Consumers are gearing up for their Black Friday spending, eager
to respond to emails that offer holiday discounts.
But they better be careful: Scam artists are flooding inboxes with unwanted emails.
Shoppers are being warned to not
open emails from unknown senders addressed to their Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail and Yahoo accounts.
The reason is that 77% of Black Friday spam is now made up of
scams, according to a recent study by Bitdefender Antispam Lab.
“If a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is!” the FBI states. “Steer clear of
unfamiliar sites offering unrealistic discounts on brand-name merchandise.”
Fraudulent spam emails have risen by 7% over the past year, and 21% since
2022, Infosecurity reports.
There is no question that shoppers are eager to get rolling. Of 70% full-time workers who plan to seek Black Friday deals, 84% will shop during
working hours, according to a survey by ResumeTemplates.com.
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But the scammers are lying in wait. Here are some of their subject lines:
- black
friday sale louis vuitton bags up to 86 off shop online now
- black friday ray ban oakley costa sunglasses up to 90 off shop online now
- cyber monday starts
now but only for you
- 25 nov 2022 is black Friday
- Claim Your $500 Home Depot Gift Card Now!
- claim your 100 walmart reward just in
time for black Friday
- the black friday countdown has begun
The purported Home Depot emails are typical. There is no gift card: Instead, victims
are directed to a so-called survey, Bitdefender reports.
It is not known to what extent consumers will heed this warning. Whatever the percentage, it could pose a risk to legitimate
marketers who will be competing for attention in consumers' inboxes.