• Black Friday sales drive high online shopping traffic, but not every site is legitimate.
• Scammers use sophisticated tools to gather your personal information.
• Regular checks and solid online security habits can play a critical role in protecting your identity.
   

Black Friday and holiday sales are here, and while it’s a great time to grab a bargain, scammers are also ramping up their efforts too. Whether you’re stocking up on Christmas gifts, updating your wardrobe or replacing household items, remember to prioritise online safety alongside budget management.

Here are key risks to watch for and some strategies to help keep your identity safe during the Black Friday sales.

Keep an eye on your credit card

In an ideal world, every site would have adequate security and you could shop online with confidence. In reality, even reputable brand websites can fall victim to data breaches involving credit card information. 

One helpful strategy is to enable automated notifications for your credit card accounts. Many credit companies will notify you whenever a purchase is made with your card. If you see a suspicious transaction, contact your credit card issuer as soon as possible to query or dispute the transaction if necessary.

You could also consider using a separate credit card with a lower limit exclusively for online shopping. This can both help you manage your spending and limit exposure if card details are compromised in a data breach.

Watch out for scams

Stay on high alert for online scams as you do your holiday shopping. Identity thieves can create websites that look legitimate in order to coax personal information from you. Stick to stores you trust and double-check the website URLs before submitting credit card numbers or other information.

As well as taking fraudulent payments, these sites can also harvest your personal identity details. This can leave you exposed to identity theft as well as your details being sold to other scammers, increasing your exposure to scam phone calls and phishing email.

Be extra careful with email and SMS links

Retailers frequently use Black Friday sales as a reason to reach out to you via email or text message with their latest offers (sometimes it feels like every business you’ve ever interacted with is in your inbox in November - often for the first time in years!)

Scammers exploit this volume by sending fake messages to try and capture your personal information. Before clicking on email links, double-check where the link is going (you can hover over it). The message could be a phishing scheme to trick you into clicking a link or attachment that will provide scammers access to your personal information. Phishing messages can also download malware onto your computer to snare your personal or financial information. 

Also, carefully review the email address of the sender to determine if you have an account with the business or know the individual sending the email before opening a link or attachment. If the link or attachment comes in the form of a text message, check whether you know the sender and verify with them it's legitimate before clicking on it.

Avoid oversharing when online shopping

While retailers often request personal details for marketing or birthday offers, remember you don’t have to give them all the information they ask for. For example, some online retailers may ask for your birthday to be able to better tailor their services to you, or perhaps to provide you birthday offers. However, if hackers gain access to this data, they’ll have personal information about you that could potentially be used to impersonate you online. 

Some sites also have the option to save payment information on the website. While this can be convenient, it’s safer to opt out of this choice. This reduces the risk of fraudsters getting access to your credit card details if the site is compromised. 

It’s also a good idea to shop from devices that have updated antivirus software installed before you enter your credit card number and shipping address. This reduces the risk of infection from malware or viruses.

Shopping over public WiFi can also increase your likelihood of inadvertently sharing personal information. For this reason, it’s best to avoid public WiFi for online shopping or banking. If you do have to use a public network, you may want to access the web using a virtual private network (VPN) connection, which sends data securely through the Internet. Finally, for private WiFi networks, whether that’s at home, work or another trusted location, make sure that it’s only accessible using a strong password.

Enjoy bargain hunting and remember the basics to stay safe online

As always, practising good online habits is one of the most important actions you can take to help protect yourself from scammers and their tactics. Here’s a reminder of the everyday foundations you should have in place when interacting online:

1. Implement strong and unique passwords for your digital accounts.
2. Use multi-factor authentication so there’s more steps to stop scammers.
3. Keep your physical and digital files secure.
4. Install internet security apps.
5. Avoid public Wi-Fi.
6. Manually check links in emails and messages.
7. Take the time to stop and check if a request is legitimate.
8. Sign up to a credit bureau, like Equifax, to help you monitor your credit profile and stay alert to potential identity theft, including access to a free credit report.

Equifax also has a range of credit and identity protection plans from as little as $9.95 a month to help you stay alert to fraud risks.
 

Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is general in nature and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Therefore, you should consider whether the information is appropriate to your circumstance before acting on it, and where appropriate, seek professional advice from a finance professional such as an adviser.