Holiday sales are usually filled with great deals, but if you aren’t careful, those holidays can lead to huge cyber losses. Norton’s Holiday Fraud Survey found that 70% of millennials are willing to take unconventional and risky steps to get high-demand gifts, and that can result in a bad actor gaining sensitive information.
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Clicking questionable social media ads, buying from strangers on social media, clicking on unknown sellers and suspicious links, and purchasing counterfeits were the most common risky actions people took.
The survey also found that 31% of Americans had been targeted by a holiday shopping scam before, and over half of those targeted actually became victims. The survey contained additional findings and detailed some ways that consumers can stay safe while shopping during the holiday season.
Take Your Time When Shopping Online
The survey found that 62% of Americans admitted that they would buy a deal on impulse. It’s no surprise that impulsive spending is so common, especially during Black Friday and Cyber Monday. People can easily buy products on various online sites, and permission to spend combined with high discounts may be too tempting for most people to think about too much.
Rushed decisions with little thought create the perfect storm for scammers to dupe holiday shoppers. Even the smartest people can become victims of online scams if they are stressed and moving too fast.
“Scammers thrive on pressure, distraction and emotional decision-making, and the holiday season delivers all three in spades,” said Leyla Bilge, director of scam research at Norton. “Scammers aren’t waiting for you to slip up. They’re counting on you to be busy, stressed and in a rush. The moment you let your guard down, they’re ready. And with the sophistication of scams nowadays, even if your guard is up, they’re ready.”
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Do Your Holiday Shopping Early
Holiday shopping can be stressful, especially if everything is selling out and you started shopping in the middle of December. It’s at these times when people are more prone to rushing their purchases and not thinking about the legitimacy of a seller.
Doing your holiday shopping in early November will give you more time to plan out how you want to distribute gifts. Many businesses run early Black Friday deals, and you can use that to your advantage when planning your shopping. It’s no longer like the Black Fridays of the past, when people sprinted and stampeded into stores right when they opened to get great deals.
Doing your holiday shopping earlier lets you take a more methodical approach to the busiest time of the year. It also makes you less prone to being stressed and rushed, the factors Bilge mentioned that can increase the likelihood of being duped by a scammer.
Only Shop With Reputable Brands
Early holiday shopping is a great way to stay safe from online scams, but it’s also important to check the legitimacy of each brand before making purchases. Sticking with established websites like Amazon and eBay can keep you at a distance from some of the most nefarious online actors. Even then, third-party sellers need to be evaluated before purchasing any of their products.
If you venture off established websites, you should check a company’s online reviews and see what people are saying about the company on Reddit. If you aren’t sure, don’t buy. While you can ask AI models if a brand is legitimate, you should always double-check what an AI model says before viewing its conclusion as the truth.
Editor’s note: GOBankingRates and Norton are part of Gen Digital, Inc.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: How Millennials’ Risky Buying Behavior Leads to Higher Cyber Losses This Season
