Tech economy reports that Google has issued a warning to its 2.5 billion Gmail users to be cautious of a surge in holiday season scams. Google has reported an increase in suspicious email activity since mid-November, coinciding with the holiday shopping season. Despite various measures Google has in place to prevent scammers from expanding their activities, these scams persist.
Scam Tactics to Watch Out For:
Amongst several ways scammers are using to perpetrate their works, Google has identified three recurring scam tactics:
- Fake Invoices: Fraudulent invoices suggesting consumers owe money are sent by scammers, this is to trick them into making payments.
- Celebrity Endorsements: To garner trust and trick victims into falling for scams, scammers pose as celebrities or make false claims about endorsements.
- Extortion Emails: In more concerning instances, scammers threaten victims by using personal information like their home addresses.
Google’s Efforts to Combat Scams
Google blocks over 99.9% of spam, phishing attempts, and malware from reaching users’ inboxes. However, scammers continue to adapt their tactics, making vigilance crucial during the holiday season.
Stay Safe This Holiday Season
To protect yourself from these scams it is important to :
- Be cautious of unsolicited emails, especially those with urgent or threatening tone.
- Verify the authenticity of invoices and celebrity endorsements.
- Never provide personal or financial information in response to an email.
- Report suspicious emails to Google.
- Avoid clicking suspicious links, Some URL shorteners are also embedded with suspicious links.
- Avoid cloned/copycat websites. Ensure you check the name of the website you are visiting because scammers usually clone some websites by omitting one later from the original websites as they know many people do not pay attention to checking or confirming the exact website name or domain name they want to visit.
Stay alert and stay safe this holiday season!
