This time of year is supposed to be synonymous with goodwill to all men, but it’s important to remember that crooks don’t stop for Christmas.
In fact, as we all begin to relax the racketeers are ramping up their operations, ready to take advantage of opportunities offered by the most wonderful time of the year.
And while we’d all like to believe that we are too clever to be conned, the truth of the matter is that scammers are constantly evolving their approaches to take advantage of seasonal openings and opportunities
With this in mind we have taken a look at some popular types of sting and how they might be tailored to the time of year to prey on people preoccupied by the demands of the holiday season.
Purchase scams
Whether it’s snapping up a bargain in the sales or someone still looking for the perfect present, this is a busy time for online sales.
But the scammers know this too and are poised to profit.
One of the most common purchase scams involves offering sought-after items for sale and requesting money by transfer, before disappearing without handing over the goods.
Online sellers should be wary too. Recent rackets have included transfer scams where dummy sites show sellers that funds have been transferred causing them to give up their goods before discovering that no money actually made it to their account.
Health scams
The cold weather brings coughs and colds, and…
