Watch out for Holiday Scams

The holiday season means fun with friends and family, goodwill and giving. Sadly, it's also a prime time for cybercrooks to cook up nefarious schemes.

More than 80 percent of U.S. consumers have experienced or been targeted by at least one form of fraud that can be tied to the holidays, including requests from (often fake) charities, online shopping scams and fraudulent communications about shipping problems, according to a 2024 AARP Fraud Watch Network report, “Holiday Fraud: Scammers Continue to Steal Holiday Cheer.”

“Holidays are a busy time for all of us with the hustle and bustle or parties and shopping, and scammers know this,” says Amy Nofziger, director of victim support, AARP’s Fraud Watch Network. “They take advantage of our hectic lives to try and target us when we are distracted.”

Common holiday scams

Card declined scams. This is a new scam criminals have cooked up, according to Melanie McGovern, spokesperson for the Better Business Bureau (BBB). You pay for a purchase online and get a message telling your card has been declined. “The transaction did go through, but they’re trying to get more information out of you,” says McGovern. Entering another card into the system means that you’ll be charged on both cards. 

Charity scams. Sham charities exploit Americans’ goodwill during giving season via fake websites and pushy telemarketers.

Online shopping scams. Bogus websites and social media campaigns that impersonate major brands. These fake posts and ads entice you to spend money for products you’ll never receive. “We have seen an increase in consumers buying from social media without doing their research. Most social media ads are not vetted,” warns Nofziger. “Be careful when you see an item offered at below market price. If you do click on an ad, make sure it directs you to the page you want to be on. Often times you are directed instead to a 3rd party vendor.”

Gift card scams. “Gift card draining is still very popular," says Nofziger. This is when criminals steal gift cards in bulk off the racks, collect the information off the card and return it to the in-store rack for unsuspecting buyers. “Once you load money on there, the criminal will drain the money off, even sometimes before you leave the store.” It’s safest to buy cards that are kept behind the counter, or directly from the retailer’s site.

Delivery scams. As holiday packages crisscross the country, scammers send out phishing emails and texts disguised as UPS, FedEx, U.S. Postal Service notifications about incoming or missed deliveries. Links lead to phony sign-in pages asking for personal information, or to sites that may be infested with malware.

Travel scams. Some criminals send scam emails and texts offering travel promotions such as free flights to get you to share credit card information or click on links that download malware. Also be wary of the many spoofed websites pretending to be legitimate hotels, airlines and other travel-related businesses.