The deals and sales are advertised heavily through email and social media, but among the real deals are also dupes like these websites according to cybersecurity firm BrandShield. Yoav Keren, with BrandShield, says, "Look at the domain name. If there's a typo that's a scam you should make sure that you're actually on the original website of the company of the brand that you're looking to buy from."
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Keren provided several examples of websites that his company has identified as copy-cat websites and could take your money. At first glance, you may think the websites are associated with well-known brands like Apple, Rolex, and a popular clothing store, but he says his company detected these sites as frauds.
He adds, "They're using AI more and more to make these websites or social media accounts look very legitimate and therefore it's extremely confusing."
To protect yourself, before clicking on any links, text messages, emails, or social media ads, look for the lock symbol, meaning the site is secure.
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Spelling and grammatical errors are red flags in the URL and throughout the site. Also, don't be tricked by too-good-to-be-true prices. Keren says, "You're going to get a fake product. Usually, they'll just steal your money or you'll get something that just looks like maybe even a picture of the product.
You're not going to get anything or some other thing just so that they can show that they've sent you something so they can keep the money."
While scammers are after your money, clicking on bad links can also put malware on your device. As you are shopping online, always double-check and do your research before clicking buy.
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