The holiday season should be about togetherness and joy—but for scammers, it’s open season on unsuspecting families. From fake online stores to charity frauds, cybercriminals know that the rush to buy gifts, book travel, and donate to good causes can make even cautious people let their guard down. According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, Americans lost more than $12 billion to online scams in 2024, a 22 percent jump from the previous year, and losses typically spike between November and January.

Here are the ten scams most likely to threaten your wallet and your privacy this holiday season—and what you can do to stay safe.

1. Fake Retail Websites

Scammers clone legitimate retailer sites, complete with logos and professional photography. Prices look amazing, but victims never receive their purchases—or their credit-card numbers are stolen.

Stay safe: Type the store’s web address manually, verify the padlock ( https ) symbol, and beware of domains with slight misspellings such as “BestBuyy.com.”

2. Social Media Shopping Ads

Fraudulent ads on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok promote limited-time “exclusive” deals. Many lead to counterfeit goods or data-harvesting pages.

Stay safe: Research the brand, read independent reviews, and pay with credit cards, never debit cards.

3. Phishing and Delivery Scams

With so many packages in transit, criminals send fake texts or emails claiming to be from UPS, FedEx, or Amazon. Clicking their link installs malware or requests payment information.

Stay safe: Track deliveries through the carrier’s official site, not links in messages.

4. Gift Card Payment Scams

Fraudsters pose as government agents or utility companies, demanding you pay fines or bills via gift cards. Once numbers are read aloud, the money is gone forever.

Stay safe: No real business or agency accepts gift cards as payment—hang up immediately.

5. Charity and Crowdfunding Frauds

Scammers exploit generosity by creating fake charities or GoFundMe pages. During 2024’s holiday season, the FTC logged a record 28,000 complaints of donation fraud.

Stay safe: Verify the organization through CharityNavigator.org or the IRS Tax-Exempt Organization Search before donating.

6. Travel Scams

Fake rental listings and phishing emails for airfare refunds trick vacationing families. Victims pay deposits for non-existent rentals or lose their credit-card info.

Stay safe: Book only through reputable travel sites and never wire money to a “host.”

7. Fake Job Offers

“Work-from-home” listings promise easy holiday cash but demand personal info or up-front fees. The FBI reports a 35 percent rise in employment fraud targeting retirees and students.

Stay safe: Verify companies on LinkedIn and never share your Social Security number before legitimate hiring steps begin.

8. Subscription Renewal Scams

Emails impersonate Netflix, Spotify, or antivirus services, claiming your subscription is expiring. Clicking the link opens a phishing portal.

Stay safe: Log in to the official app instead of following email links.

9. Crypto Investment and AI Trading Schemes

Scammers advertise “AI-powered trading bots” guaranteeing huge holiday profits. In 2024, victims lost $3.2 billion to crypto investment fraud, the FTC says.

Stay safe: No legitimate investment guarantees returns—especially via social media.

10. Fake Charity Gift Exchanges and Secret Santas

Posts ask users to mail one gift and receive ten in return. It’s an illegal pyramid scheme designed to harvest personal information.

Stay safe: Avoid chain-gift posts and never share your home address online.

Recognizing the Warning Signs

Most scams share the same psychological triggers—urgency, scarcity, and emotion. Criminals push you to act fast: “Claim this deal before midnight!” or “Your account will be suspended unless you pay now!” Pause, verify, and never feel pressured to respond instantly.

How Families Can Stay Protected

1. Educate everyone at home.
Talk with kids, teens, and older relatives about common scam types. Awareness is your first defense.

2. Use credit cards over debit.
Credit cards offer fraud protection and chargeback rights that debit cards do not.

3. Update passwords.
Avoid reusing logins across sites. Use a password manager to generate unique credentials.

4. Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA).
Even if a password leaks, MFA prevents unauthorized logins.

5. Monitor financial statements weekly.
Set up alerts for suspicious transactions and review your bank or PayPal accounts regularly.

6. Install device security updates.
Most malware infiltrates through outdated software.

When You’ve Been Scammed

If you realize you’ve fallen for a holiday scam:

1. Contact your bank or credit-card company immediately to freeze charges.
2. Report the incident to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
3. Change all passwords connected to compromised accounts.
4. Alert your family so others don’t fall for similar messages.

Quick action can minimize losses and prevent identity theft.

The holidays bring connection—but also risk. Fake deals, cloned sites, and too-good-to-be-true offers are designed to exploit trust and distraction. By slowing down, verifying sources, and protecting your information, you can focus on what truly matters: time with the people you love.

Stay safe, shop smart, and let IDefendForYou be your partner in holiday peace of mind.

How IDefendForYou Keeps You Safe This Holiday Season

Scammers thrive on stolen personal data—and once your information is online, it spreads fast. With IDefendForYou, families get:

• Dark web monitoring to detect leaked credentials early.
• Online data removal from data-broker sites selling your info.
• Identity theft restoration handled by U.S.-based specialists.
• Family Safety tools to teach digital awareness and set privacy controls.

This season, the best gift you can give your family is digital security. Try IDefendForYou risk free for 14 days now!