Aussies have been urged to watch out for email scams this festive season, as scammers ramp up their attacks.
Google is blocking billions of unwanted emails every day, including spam, phishing and malware emails, and has warned scammers will be getting “more extreme” as Christmas approaches.
“Malicious actors don’t slow down during the holiday season – they accelerate,” Google Cloud said.
“In the past two weeks alone, we blocked over 231 billion spam and phishing messages, 10 per cent higher than the average volume.”
Here are the top five scams to watch out for this Christmas.
1. Fake gift cards and giveaways
“Scammers may attempt to trick people into purchasing a gift card for them – sometimes using the guise of a known contact – or dangle a free prize in exchange for sharing their credit card information,” Google Cloud explained.
If you receive an email from a friend, send them a quick message to make sure it is genuine. And if a giveaway seems too good to be true, it could be a scam.
2. Fake donations
Christmas is a time of giving and unfortunately scammers can take advantage of this. According to Google Cloud, charity-related scams and phishing attempts often get worse at this time of year.
“Whether it’s a supposed charity tied to a subject in the news, or an organisation with a familiar name, be on the lookout for anyone asking you to contact them on their personal email…
