Brits are being warned to be extra cautious when taking advantage of Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals this year, with the UK set to experience an increase in online scams and a record high stolen by opportunistic cybercriminals.

Black Friday weekend presents a much-needed opportunity for businesses and shoppers alike as the UK is set to spend more than ever this year, with a huge £6 billion projected to be spent online, an average of £296 by each Brit, according to finder.com.

Unfortunately, online retailers and shoppers aren’t the only ones rubbing their hands ahead of the upcoming bargain weekend, so too are cybercriminals as they follow the money and the market and look to take advantage of millions of unsuspecting and unprepared shoppers.

Research by Barclays reports that a quarter of those aged between 18-34 alone have fallen for a scam in the past five years during this one weekend, with victims ending up on average over £660 down after falling for cybercrime tactics. This number is expected to increase with Brits expected to be more active and spend more this year than ever – with £400 million more spent than 2019 projected.

Cybercriminal tactics have become more sophisticated than ever. The National Crime Agency (NCA) has identified a surge in malicious apps, websites, phishing emails and messages that seek to steal sensitive information, data and money.

Technical and cybersecurity experts Luis Navarro and Pedro Martins of WFH IT Support – part of award-winning IT support company, Totality Services – are on hand to help the nation stay secure whilst shopping online this year as they share the key scams to look out for and tips on how to avoid falling victim to them.

Luis Navarro, co-founder at WFH IT Support, said: “Black Friday provides cybercriminals with the perfect shopping storm to exploit online shoppers with tactics including fake sites, wi-fi hacking and email phishing. Cybercriminals and their attacks are increasingly more sophisticated, so online shoppers need to be super-cautious when chasing the latest bargain this year.”

Latest online scams and top tips to avoid them this Black Friday weekend:

PHISHING EMAILS

Phishing attacks have grown to be the most widespread and successful online ways to steal your personal information, accounting for 44 percent of attacks, without you even knowing it.

Amazon, Pandora and Royal Mail are all brands that have been used as disguises by cybercriminals recently. Emails describing an order confirmation or requesting payment detail amendments have been sent from fraudulent accounts such as [email protected]. These attacks get ramped-up during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday weekend. For the cybercriminal, they’re fast, simple and offer a good return on investment.

TIP: Check the actual email address the email copy and links for any typos. Be wary of any e-mails offering cash prizes, last-minute deals or from ANYBODY you don’t recognise or didn’t request information from; even from recognised retailers. More importantly, don’t open such e-mails or click on any links or downloads that come with them. If you aren’t convinced, go to the supposed retailer’s website and check details and/or login there. Trust your instincts, if it looks wrong it probably is – delete immediately.

FAKE WEBSITES

Fraudsters clone websites to fool you into thinking you’re shopping on a legitimate site. The fake websites can often be difficult to tell from the real thing but subtle differences should set your alarm bells ringing.

TIP: Look out for web addresses that should end in ‘.co.uk’ but instead end in ‘.org’. In addition, photos and images may be pixilated and look of poor quality, functions on the site may not work as you’d expect and the content will often be sub-standard (poor grammar and spelling mistakes are a sure sign of a fake!). Always check the address of a site to confirm its authenticity.

PUBLIC WI-FI HACKING

By using public Wi-Fi to search for the best deals, you open yourself up to a range of security risks. The problem is that public Wi-Fi requires no authentication to establish a network connection. This enables fraudsters to gain direct access to any unsecured devices on that open network – including yours! The result? Hackers steal valuable information such as your login passwords as well as credit card and other personal and financial details.

Public Wi-Fi networks can also be used to spread malware, allowing cybercriminals free reign to access everything on your device. The information they discover can then be used to commit identity fraud in your name or sold on to other criminals.

TIP: Use mobile data where possible and if not then wait until you are on a secure Wi-Fi network at home or at a friend’s. If you are out and about and see an item you want to purchase but have no signal, take a screen grab and order the item once you have mobile data or a secure network.

Additional tips to stay secure whilst shopping online:

STRONG PASSWORD PRACTISE

Creating a strong password really is one of the easiest ways to protect yourself from online fraud. Make your password long, strong and difficult to crack by ensuring it’s between 15-20 characters, contains a mix of upper and lowercase letters, and includes numbers or symbols.

With so many passwords to remember we’re tempted to use the same one for multiple accounts. However, a hacker only has to crack your password for one site and, before you can say ‘cybersecurity’, they’ve got access to far more important parts of your digital life, such as your bank and credit card accounts. To be extra safe, try to use a unique username and password for every separate online account to safeguard each.