Safe online shopping: how to avoid scammers before the New Year holidays

On the eve of the New Year holidays, we all want to have time to buy gifts for our relatives and friends. But you need to be especially careful when searching for these gifts on the Internet. After all, it is during this period that online scammers become more active, creating fake stores, sending suspicious offers and using various schemes to steal your data. To avoid falling victim to them, it's important to know how to protect yourself when shopping online.

Nikita Veselkov, head of the ESET SOC team in Ukraine, shared with UNN about the most common fraud schemes, effective ways to protect personal data and secure payment methods. In addition, it provides practical recommendations on how to check the online store before buying and what to do if you still run into scammers.

By following these simple tips, you can enjoy safe online shopping without worrying about your money and personal information.

What fraudulent schemes on the Internet are most often used by users?

Most often, users on the internet come across phishing emails with various favorable offers, fake messages from the delivery service, and fraudulent online stores disguised as popular trading platforms. Especially the activity of online scammers increases during major events, including New Year's holidays. If the offer looks very attractive, I recommend that you don't click on suspicious links. Instead, it's better to go to the store's official website or visit another reliable shopping service.

Attackers often target people who are waiting for parcels and gifts to be delivered during the New Year holidays. In particular, scammers pretend to be well-known delivery services and send fake links to track parcels, which can look quite convincing. Clicking on such a link may cause malware to download or go to a dangerous website to steal your credentials. To avoid such fraud schemes, track the delivery of your products on official websites.

Another infection technique is harmful online advertising. In addition, cybercriminals can infect popular websites. If you visit such a page, malicious software is installed on your device. Threats to steal bank card data can also often be contained in malicious smartphone apps that are distributed under the guise of secure apps.

What personal data protection methods are most effective when shopping online?

In order not to become a victim of scammers when shopping online, first of all, you should use a special browser that protects against various online threats, and a program to protect against malware on the Internet. In addition, you should avoid storing card data on online store sites, filling out suspicious online forms, and using public Wi-Fi, which will significantly reduce the risk of identity theft. 

Many users like to connect to public WiFi, but you should not make payments via public networks. Because public access points are often targeted by attackers who try to compromise the device or intercept users ' internet traffic. Therefore, it is better to use mobile internet and, if you need to connect to  public Wi-Fi, use a VPN to encrypt your traffic.

After making a purchase, you should log in to your bank account and check whether the announced price matches the price that you paid for the product. If the amount paid is higher or other suspicious activity occurs, you should contact the appropriate banking institution and block your card. 

Also, be careful with too tempting offers from stores that encourage urgent action or offer unrealistic discounts, because these are the techniques used by scammers.

How do I check the security of an online store before making a purchase?

Every year before the winter holidays, cybercriminals create fraudulent online trading platforms to lure victims and steal their money. In order not to fall into such fraudulent online stores, you should make purchases from reliable suppliers with good reviews.

Online purchases should only be made on sites with HTTPS (a "lock" sign should be displayed in the browser's address bar next to the URL), which minimizes the chances of data interception. In addition, pay attention to links of online stores sent by unknown senders in social networks or mail. They must match the links to official stores, otherwise don't click on the link. You should also check that the Web page name is correct to avoid fraudulent sites that disguise themselves as legitimate ones, such as g00gle instead of google.

What are the most popular payment methods that are most secure when shopping online?

When shopping online, use Apple Pay or Google Pay for payment, which are considered safer than a regular bank card with contactless payment. Because such services, instead of actual card numbers, provide only the names of virtual accounts that are generated for each payment.

But also don't forget to protect your smartphone itself.to protect yourself and your own funds, enable all available security measures on your mobile device. Usually, the functionality of a modern phone involves checking biometric data (scanning the face, retina, or fingerprint) and code. Confirming your identity every time you log in to the device and the payment apps on it will make it harder for attackers to work. 

Most payment programs offer additional security features, such as two-factor authentication. You can also protect your apps with security measures such as biometric verification or code blocking, and enable them when making transactions. 

What should I do if I encounter scammers, and Where Should I contact?

In case of theft of personal data by fraudsters, you should immediately report the incident to your bank and block all cards to prevent theft of funds or other fraudulent activities. In addition, you need to change all passwords that may have been hacked.