Watch out for These Four Black Friday/Cyber Monday Phishing Lures

The Black Friday weekend might be over, but that doesn’t stop the hackers from still luring innocent customers into revealing their sensitive details. This year the expected physical shoppers are around 115 million. It only means hackers will up their ante — when it comes to laying phishing traps. Couple this with Cyber Monday, it’s almost like the hackers can’t resist the temptation and are sure to set baits.

Several scammers establish and run the gamut of unethical merchants duping users into visiting bogus high-end retailing websites to them knock-off items at a “discount.” The primary goal is to entice visitors into “making” the purchase — and thereby — steal their credit card information.

Cybercriminals use Black Friday to cover their attacks. They know that people are looking for a chance to buy expensive things at a much lower cost, so the phishers make sure they offer the best price, disguising themselves as well known and trusted brands.

Thus, it is quintessential to be aware of the potential impending attacks to stay safe and secure. Let’s take a look at some of the popular phishing lures.

Ray-Ban 80% discount sale

Scammers leveraged the Ray-Ban brand to lure customers into clicking the malicious links. The ad claimed 80% discount on ‘original’ Ray-Ban products. The fraudsters used SEO techniques cleverly to appear higher in the Google search results. So when a customer clicked on the result, they’re directed to www[.]rb6[.]us. The intention of the cybercriminals is to steal sensitive financial and personal information.

Free Apple iPhone 6

As the new iPhones 8, 8+, and X are released in the market, the cybercriminals are offering fake giveaways of iPhone 6. Fake Apple email called on users to participate in a Black Friday contest to win a free iPhone 6. But users needed to enter their personally identifiable information into the form. Users should study the domain name carefully when they get emails with Black Friday offers that appear to be too good to be true.

Free preloaded Amazon gift card

Scammers offered a free, preloaded Amazon gift card to users who registered for Black Friday rewards. A bogus Amazon website prompted users to sign into their account or create a new one, in order to participate in an Amazon Black Friday preloaded gift card offering. Check for the gold shield certificate in the upper left hand corner, or a lock in front of the URL, which can be clicked on to verify the name of the website.

Michael Kors 80% handbag sale

The fraudsters chose Michael Kors brand to offer steep 80% Black Friday discount on fake Michael Kors handbags. Users were lured with phishing emails to a bogus Michael Kors website, where they found bargain basement prices for the retailer's high-end handbags. However, this one is easy to spot as it doesn’t any certificate, and moreover, the website appears cheesy with fake Michael Kors logo.