This is the season of scams: 2024 holiday guide to spotting phishing attacks

The holiday season is right around the corner, which means it’s the time for lots of online shopping, hotels, and flight bookings, not to mention a sudden surge in cyberattacks. You might think that the holiday season is supposed to be exciting and fun, but the truth is that it can become a prime opportunity for scammers to strike. 

You’d be surprised to know that during the festive season, there’s almost a 12% surge in online traffic with a 30% increase in attacks, particularly between October and November. Apart from the shoppers, there’s also an influx of bot traffic during this time. These bots target high-demand products, take advantage of new customer discounts, and copy prices and content from websites, along with other shady tactics. 

If you’re a holiday enthusiast, you should be wary of these cyberattacks and never think that you cannot be one of the targets. The first step to protecting yourself from the wrath of these holiday scams is to recognize the common red flags.

Common phishing scams during the holiday season

Here are some of the top areas targeted by phishing scams ahead of the holiday season. 

Online shopping deals

It’s easy to get tempted by lucrative deals, especially if it is around the festive season. But the sad part is that not all the deals that you come across online are as good as they seem to be. Instead, they are crafted by scammers to dupe unsuspecting shoppers into clicking on malicious links or visiting fake websites that imitate trusted brands. Most of these deals impersonate established brands and offer unbelievable offers or exclusive deals to gain your trust, only for them to steal your data or your payment information. So, beware of such scams and don’t fall victim to them.

Flights and hotel booking scams

Whether you are planning a family vacation or traveling home for the holidays, you should be aware of the flight and hotel scams that occur more frequently during peak travel seasons. This is usually when phishing attacks flood inboxes and even text messages, posing as various airlines, travel agencies, or hotel chains.

These messages often offer unbeatable deals or send urgent alerts about your reservations, pressuring you to click on links or provide sensitive information. They might look like legit emails because of familiar logos and brand language, but they are actually designed to steal your personal or financial information.

Gift card scams 

Gift cards are one of the most preferred gift choices, especially during the holiday season. But unfortunately, they are also a prime target for scammers to execute phishing attacks. One of the common tactics that these attackers employ is sending out emails or texts with enticing messages stating that you have won free gift cards or have chances to get some amazing deals on one.

That’s not all; to look all the more legitimate and eradicate the possibility of suspicion, they generate discount codes to create fake gift cards. Although these cards look legitimate, they are all scams. When you try to redeem them or enter your personal details to ‘activate’ the deal, scammers steal your personal details or payment information. This is exactly why one of the banks in the U.S. warned its customers to steer clear of any unsolicited offers of gift cards and purchase them only from authorized stores. 

Fake order tracking emails or messages 

The holiday season is all about online shopping and buying gifts for your friends and family. With so many packages on the way, scammers take advantage of this by sending fake order-tracking emails or text messages. These messages usually resemble popular retailers or shipping companies, informing you that there is a problem with your delivery or that there is a tracking link you can use to check on your order status. Once you click on these links, they can lead to phishing pages that steal PII (Personally Identifiable Information) or ask for payment. 

The impact of these scams on businesses

You might be wondering what these holiday scams have to do with your business, as they are mostly consumer-centric. You’re right, but the truth is they end up hurting businesses in big ways, too.

To begin with, scams such as false gift card offers, hotel bookings, etc., damage the reputation of a business. When a scammer assumes the identity of a real company, people get the wrong impression about that company, even though it’s not involved. It is unfair, but that’s the reality businesses have to face. They also suffer at the hands of scams that redirect consumers to fake payment sites. When people pay the scammer by mistake, they are then hesitant to make purchases from the real business. This directly affects the bottom line. 

Protecting yourself and your customers from holiday scams with DMARC

Did you know that, according to a survey published in 2021, almost  89% of businesses across the world are concerned about cyber attacks during the holiday season? Today, we anticipate this number to be even higher as cyber threats continue to grow in sophistication and frequency. If your organization still does not bother about security, particularly during this time, you might want to rethink your cybersecurity strategy. 

An effective way to protect your organization and your customers is by authenticating your email communications with DMARC. This authentication protocol ensures that emails claiming to be from your domain are legitimate, stopping unauthorized messages before they reach your customers. By authenticating your emails with DMARC, you can maintain your brand’s trustworthiness and reduce the likelihood of your customers falling victim to holiday scams linked to your business name.

If you haven’t set up DMARC yet, this holiday season is the right time to do so! Need help safeguarding your business’ reputation and creating a safe shopping experience for your customers during one of the busiest shopping times of the year? Get in touch with us to start your DMARC journey!