Staying Safe at Christmas

Scams range from the sophisticated to outdated, but anyone can be caught out. Francis West of Westtek tells us what to look out for

Christmas gets earlier each year, and it’s not unusual to see Christmas items on sale and Christmas deals being promoted in October. It’s so easy to get caught up in the lights, music and frivolities of Christmas and to take our eyes off the bauble when it comes to security. And this is exactly what the hackers and cyber criminals rely on. Every little security lapse can result in lost data, lost money and lost time. The Christmas scams are varied but all amount to the same thing – scammers trying to get money or data from you.

Keeping safe in the festive season

However, although the scammers are waiting for you to drop your guard during the festive season, it’s easy to stay safe and still enjoy the build-up to Christmas.

• Shop safe – Although it is convenient to click on links in emails, this is the easiest way for a scammer to send you to a fake site. So, make it a habit, to use the promotional emails as information only, and go direct to the company website without clicking on their links. If the deals are genuine they will be on the site, and if they’re not you dodged a bullet.

• Email safe – As most scams come in via email, ensuring you have email security processes in place will help. These include a robust spam filter, anti-virus software and end to end encryption for good measure. But nothing beats being scam aware. Check who the email is from – a reputable business is unlikely to use a Gmail account (e.g., Paypal@gmail.com) and their username will not be fahlkjhjh! Also check the company name is spelt correctly in the email address or website they are trying to link you to (not Paypa1). If the email appears to be from a friend – with just a link for example and no message – contact them and ask if it is genuine before clicking on it.

• Use secure networks – Always use a secure Wi-Fi network. If you do connect to free Wi-Fi whilst out shopping, be careful of the sites that you visit and the data you are entering. If it is something you wouldn’t want a hacker to know, don’t type it in over an open network.

Top five festive scams

1. Christmas e-cards – although not as common as they were 10 years ago, you may still get the odd e-card sent by email. These come with a link to the card – or more likely a phishing site designed to steal data or download malware to your device.

2. Phishing emails – November and December are the months of the marketing email, where every store you’ve ever shopped with (and many you haven’t) will email you with their Christmas deals. These emails will include links which could take you to a fake site where they will steal your data or download malware to your device.

3. Auction website scams – A lot of scams take place on auction sites, or sites where anyone can set up their own seller accounts. With a folder of stolen stock images, and a reputable looking fake account buyers can be scammed out of thousands of pounds on merchandise that doesn’t actually exist.

4. Seller scams – It’s not just the buyers who are at risk, as in 2020 there were a number of sellers targeted by cyber criminals. By keeping an eye on what particular sellers were selling, the scammers emailed them from a fake address pretending to be PayPal for example, informing them they had been paid for a particular item hoping the seller would then send it to the address provided.

5. Fake loan scams – Christmas is an expensive time, which can lead some people to consider loans. Scammers target people via phishing emails, with the offer of a same day loan, no credit checks and a low interest rate. And if you contact them you will be told to pay a small set-up fee upfront via bank transfer. The scammer will then disappear with your money.

If you want more advice on avoiding phishing and smishing campaigns and generally being safer online during the festive season speak with Security Everywhere today. www.security-everywhere.com / francis.w@westtek.co.uk