00:00As Black Friday sales approach, experts and government officials are warning shoppers
00:04of scams they might see when they shop for last-minute holiday gifts, as innovations
00:09in artificial intelligence help criminals design more sophisticated scams.
00:15Emails Targeted purchase scams through emails were
00:20the most reported type of any shopping scam, according to data from Barclays.
00:26Customers may receive email alerts of sales that claim to be from legitimate retailers
00:30like Amazon or Costco advertising their Black Friday deals.
00:36Social Media Ads About one in four people who reported losses
00:41to fraud since 2021 say it started on social media, according to the Federal Trade Commission.
00:48As targeting tools available to advertisers can help scammers personalize fraudulent ads
00:53based on personal details like past purchase history and interests.
00:59Delivery Notices Text messages that purport to be from a delivery
01:03service such as the United States Postal Service asking for personal information, including
01:08zip codes or payment information, are one of the most common holiday-related scams,
01:14according to Cliff Steinhauer, Director of Information Security and Engagement at the
01:18nonprofit National Cybersecurity Alliance.
01:23Search Engine Links Advertising links on search results that
01:27pretend to sell popular products could also lead to fake sites, Steinhauer warns, as more
01:33cybercriminals take advantage of excitement around the holidays.
01:38One in three Americans have fallen for a scam during the holiday season, according to security
01:43software firm McAfee's 2024 Global Holiday Shopping Scam Study, with 58 percent of victims
01:49having lost money to those scams.
01:53Some $95.2 million in losses was reported to the Federal Trade Commission between October
01:58through December of last year.
02:03Scams look a lot more legitimate than they used to because of innovations in generative
02:07artificial intelligence, and criminals are able to create larger-scale attacks with AI
02:12more quickly.
02:14If the discount seems too good to be true, consumers should check the website URL or
02:19go directly to a retailer's website to check if the sale is legitimate.
02:25For more on this story, check out Lindsay Chu's article in the link in the description.
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