Drop the drop shippers: On Etsy, the whole purpose is to buy something handmade. If you’re not sure what you’re getting is legit, check if it’s genuine or mass-produced junk by doing a reverse image search. Click on the item’s image, then drag and drop it into Google Images. Major red flag: You see the exact same thing on other sites.
5 clever tricks holiday scammers use
JD in Dallas emailed me with a story. He and his wife were at the mall and stopped for a Christmas selfie. Two young men walking by offered to take the pic for them — and one kept wiping the phone’s lens inside his jacket.
“It seemed like too big of a production and felt suspicious. Am I overreacting?”
JD, you learned a valuable lesson: Never hand your unlocked phone to a stranger. They were most likely trying to send themselves money. Have your wife check her financial accounts for any strange transactions.
The holiday shopping frenzy is here, and most tricks are digital. It’s easy to let your guard down when you’re in a rush. I’ve got a list of the most devious scams you need to watch, brought to you by my antivirus pick, TotalAV.
Don’t fall for this junk
📦 Fake order confirmations: These are everywhere. The message is some variation of “Your package couldn’t be delivered!” Click the link to reschedule delivery and you’ll land on a fake site that asks for personal details like your address or credit card info.
🎁 Bogus giveaways: “Win $1,000!” Just fill out a quick form and you’re in! And you’ve just handed over your email, phone number and other details to who-knows-who. Only enter giveaways from companies and people you trust (like me!).
🔍 Search engine traps: You search for a store’s site or return policy and land on a scammy duplicate designed to steal your login info. Always type in the web address directly if you know it; otherwise, scroll past sponsored results, which are easier to hack.
💳 Skimmed checkout pages: Everything looks normal, but hidden behind the scenes, a skimmer on the site steals your credit card details.
🤖 Bogus CAPTCHA forms: You know the drill: Prove you’re human by checking “I’m not a robot.” But what happens next is the trap. Instead of moving forward, you’re asked to download a file for “instructions.” Spoiler alert: That “instruction” file installs malware on your device.
Kim’s holiday safety checklist
These scams are tricky, but you can outsmart the bad guys.
How to spot fake reviews on Amazon and other sites online
With the holidays around the corner, I’m gearing up for a whole lot of online shopping between now and Christmas. And while I’m glad the FTC is finally cracking down on fake and paid reviews, let’s be real — it’s not going to catch every bogus review out there.
How to spot AI-generated fakes
It’s not just about spotting Photoshop edits anymore. Now, we can’t even be sure if the person in a photo or video is real.
Heads-up, Apple shoppers: Scammers are walking into Apple Stores with fake IDs and QR codes to steal laptops before the real buyers show up. It’s not quite clear how the shysters are getting the intel, so keep an eye on your order status and pick up your new tech ASAP.
15 minutes
To create diamonds. Real diamonds form 100 miles below the earth’s surface at 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit. A team in South Korea used a special gallium-silicon mixture to create a diamond foundation in 15 minutes at room temp. No pressure — the whole thing was done in 2.5 hours.
5 things that make you a target online
Too many people share just about everything online. That’s a one-way ticket to Scamtown. Some info makes you an especially prime target. Keep these close to the vest.
Widows and widowers are big targets. Crooks want to get their grimy hands on inheritance money. Take Rosalie Douglass, who tried her hand at online dating and listed “widow” as her relationship status. Two different scammers connected with Rosalie and swindled her out of a staggering $430,000.
Weight loss drugs sold online can make you sick
“Drop 10 pounds before Thanksgiving!” That’s all over my social media feeds because I was a dope and clicked on a video of a gal showing off her svelte new figure.
Ads for Ozempic and other weight loss meds are everywhere. The weight loss drug biz is a $100 billion industry. I know a bunch of people who have taken Ozempic, Wegovy, Rybelsus or one of the other options, and I bet you do, too.
Wtach out for typos: Scammers are stealing a boatload through accidental crypto transactions caused by typosquatting. They make copycat URLs close to real sites and wallet addresses. Type it in and your money goes right to a scammer. You’ll never get it back. The shady practice pulls in $500 million a year. Stay safe: Always triple-check to make sure you’re sending money to the right place, crypto or otherwise.
There’s no fun in these funerals: Scammers are creating 24/7 fake funeral livestreams on Facebook and tricking people into handing over their credit card info. They use real photos and details about a person who’s passed, then they ask for a card “to verify your location” and secretly set you up for recurring payments.
🚨 Black Friday alert: Chinese scammers are imitating big brands like L.L. Bean and Ikea with “deals” up to 80% off. They use tracking pixels in Meta and TikTok to detect your location and translate the site so it looks legit. Don’t fall for too-good-to-be-true offers, and shop on official sites only!
🚨 Be smart; don’t put anything in your cart: A Chinese fraud network is using thousands of fake online stores to steal credit cards. They’re impersonating brands like The North Face, Ikea and Wayfair with (fake) massive discounts. Red flags? Many sites have “blackfriday” in the domain name and end with .shop, .store, .vip or .top.
🚨 “Are Bengal cats legal in Australia?” Type that into Google Search and you’re in trouble. Hackers are creating fake websites and hijacking real ones to land at the top for popular search terms. No kidding, cat sites are a big target. Once you’re there, the goal is to get you to download a zip file. Safety first: Never download anything from a website you stumbled upon.
🚨 FBI alert: Fake videos are all over social media! One video claims the FBI busted three groups for “ballot fraud,” while another drags in Kamala Harris’ husband. There’s even a phony clip with people supposedly from Haiti claiming to vote illegally in Georgia counties. These are designed to mess with our trust in elections, so keep an eye out and don’t fall for it!
Spot a fake review online? You can now report it to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov. This includes sham testimonials, AI-generated comments and marketers using bots to inflate their follower counts. The penalty? Up to $51,744 per violation!
You can’t spell “crypto” without “C-R-Y”: The FBI created a fake cryptocurrency to nail pump-and-dump fraudsters. That’s where they inflate a crypto’s price with phony trades, convince others to buy, then cash out before the crash. The FBI set up a slick website, and shady companies took the bait. Now, 18 people and companies face fraud and market manipulation charges. But there are thousands more out there.
🔎 Real deal or cheap knockoff? You find a great dress, pair of shoes, wallet or whatever online. Is it a nicely made piece or something you could buy in bulk on Alibaba? One easy way to check: Do a reverse image search. Upload a saved pic here on Google Images and see if you can spot the exact product elsewhere.
🙏 Please be cautious about falling for heartbreaking, AI-generated images like this one circulating on social media after Hurricane Helene. Use this site to detect AI-generated images: https://hivemoderation.com/ai-generated-content-detection
Apple’s next big idea: Robot butlers
Picture an AI smarty-pants to wash the dishes, clean the house and video chat with you when you’re not home. Plus, fakes on Facebook, no more sharing Disney+ passwords, and Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology.
Trump fakes are coming – How to spot them
Former President Donald Trump was found guilty in a hush-money trial. You can bet hackers and scammers are already figuring out how to take advantage.