How to protect yourself from scams this holiday season
WASHINGTON (CNN) – As the season of giving draws near, so does the season of stealing.
CNN reports digital thieves want to take advantage of the holidays, and experts say they’re really not changing the playbook since Americans keep falling for scams.
Those scams can be anywhere, including email, text messages and even while scrolling social media.
Melanie McGovern, Better Business Bureau director of communications, says scammers can follow consumers just like legitimate marketers.
This can include tracking cookies, seeing where you go, seeing what you’re searching for and then having an ad pop up for something that you searched for nearly an hour ago.
Some of the top scams to look out for this year, according to experts, include package non-delivery alerts, which are texts from scammers pretending to be shipping companies hoping you’ll click that link.
In addition, the list includes fake charities asking for a donation, gift card exchanges or giveaway schemes and fake or misleading social media products.
McGovern says they see websites pop up with the same look and feel of a legitimate retailer, however, one of the letters in the URL is off.
There are ways you can protect yourself, your finances and your data.
Experts say to make sure the business is reputable, to strengthen your passwords and to avoid questionable links in texts or emails.
Danni Santana, Cybersecurity and Money editor with CNET, says, “If a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is.”
If you do happen to fall for a scam, one of the first things you can do is call your bank.
Most have varying levels of fraud protection, and you may be able to get your cash back in your account or get identity theft protection to help with the aftermath.
