Let’s give you some tips to avoid the main Black Friday scamsso that the illusion of buying something at a good Price does not become a nightmare. Because if you can normally come across many online scams, during offer periods like this they can multiply.
We are going to try to make this article in a summarized way so that it is easy to understand. First we are going to give you a list with the main types of scam that you are going to find today and throughout the weekend, and then we will tell you some of the tips to follow to avoid them.
What are the main threats
Let’s start with a list of the main threats What are you going to find on a day like Esther? Thus, by knowing them you will have a better chance of being able to identify them when you come across one of them. In this list we will put each threat and describe it to you.
- Fake online stores: It is very possible that there are fraudulent pages that pose as online stores where they sell products at low prices… products that do not exist, because the websites are not real and they only want to steal your personal data and your card details.
- Deals too good to be true: This is always the bait for many types of scams. If you see an offer that is too good to be true, be wary, because it may be a scam looking to steal your money.
- Phishing: Phishing is already part of our lives. You may possibly receive fake offers by email or SMS. These are offers that will take you to a fraudulent website where your data can be stolen.
- Identity theft: There are many types of phishing that you can find, from those that send you non-existent offers to others in which they impersonate companies to trick you and take you to clone pages where they can steal your personal or banking information.
- Counterfeit products: Some of the products you see discounted online could be counterfeit, especially when the prices are too good to be true or they are from fake or fraudulent pages.
- Scams on social networks: On social networks there may also be scam ads, phishing campaigns by private message, and fake online stores. You can find everything we have said above.
How to avoid these types of scams
The most important thing to avoid this type of scam is not to get carried away by the desire for a good offer. If it’s a store whose name you’ve never heard, check its reliability onlinesearch for their name in forums or communities, try to see some trace or opinion of other users. If you can’t find it, if it seems to be a ghost store, it’s best not to trust it.
When an offer is too good, it is always a good idea to take extreme caution, because it is one of the most common hooks for scams, and it is usually accompanied by another practice such as hurrying up by telling you things like that the offer only lasts a few minutes.
In these cases of very good offers, never trust them. Check the website and product information carefully. Make sure the page is trustworthy and that the product is real, and if there is a review system read the opinion of other users to detect if it is original, used or a fake.
You should also always have plenty Beware of SMS and emails with attached links. You should look at the URL of the link, the name of the address, and check that it does not take you to a strange website that you do not know, especially if they are posing as a well-known business.
The best in these cases is manually enter the official website of the online store from your browser or the app, and search directly for the product or promotion there. try never access a promotion from an SMS or email.
You should also pay attention to how the message is worded. There may be grammatical errors, or using names that are not specific, and these are clues to find fakes or phishing messages.
You also have to apply all of this to offer ads on social networks. Check carefully the profile that does so and whether it is real or not, and be very careful with the links it may include.
When you enter a website from a link, something that we have already recommended you not to do. Look closely at the web address above, because even if the url includes the name of a famous store, it may not be the real page. Also look for inconsistencies to identify if it is a fake website.
Never make payments in advance nor anything that is out of a normal purchase. If in an online store someone offers something but to Buy outside that store, better forget it.
And whenever you go to pay, use a secure payment method. We recommend using virtual cards or PayPal, something that does not mean entering your card information. This is something you should avoid whenever you can.
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