Mother’s Day is right around the corner — have you prepared your gifts? Just like last year, we’ve been tracking many scams and phishing attempts using the good name of Mother’s Day. Read on for what we’ve found!

Online Survey Phishing

Impersonating trusted brands, scammers will send you phishing links via social media, text message, or email, with the goal of stealing your personally identifiable information (PII): email address, Social Security number, credit card number, and more. They falsely claim you can win a gift by participating in their online survey via the attached links. These links lead to scam phishing websites designed to record any credentials you submit. With your stolen information, scammers can then commit identity theft and other crimes. See the below examples for reference.

Scammers have been using people’s compromised accounts to spread phishing links on Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp for a while.

As Mother’s Day approaches, scammers are also promoting bogus Mother’s Day giveaway campaigns.

#1 – Amazon Mother’s Day Giveaway Scam (via WhatsApp)

Have you received messages on WhatsApp about the Amazon Mother’s Day giveaway? Don’t click — it’s a SCAM!

If you open the link, it will take you to a fake Amazon survey page that will instruct you to answer questions and submit personal data like your address and credit card number. It will also ask you to share the link others, exposing your credentials — but friends and family too. Don’t fall for the scam!

#2 – Costco Mother’s Day $8000 Gift Scam (via Facebook Messenger)

“Congratulations! Costco Mother’s day gift. Through the questionnaire you’ll have a chance to get $8000!” Have you seen this message on Facebook Messenger recently? Delete and ignore. The Costco name is also featured in the latest Mother’s Day giveaway scams.

Scammers will prompt you to click on the attached phishing link via Facebook Messenger, leading you to fake Costco survey pages — if you submit personal information, it will end up in the scammer’s hands!

Protect Yourself from Phishing Scams (for Free)    

The best way to prevent phishing scams is to never click on links from unknown sources, but a FREE tool to help you fight scams wouldn’t hurt either, would it? Trend Micro Check is a free browser extension and mobile app for detecting scams, phishing attacks, malware, and dangerous links. Download today and surf the web with confidence! 

Check out this page for more information on Trend Micro Check.    

Fake Mother’s Day Promotional Campaign Text Messages

Besides fake giveaway links, scammers will also send out text messages directing you to scam online shops advertising too-good-to-be-true deals. Be aware of the below, and never click on unknown links.

#1 – Michael Kors

(LIVE PUBLIC ONLINE AUCTION SUNDAY <DATES> @<TIME>) 0,000 ITEMS MICHAEL KORS PURSES FOR MOTHERS DAY GIFTS!!! NEW FURNITURE, SECTIONALS, ELECTRONICS, APPLIANCES, PATIO FURNITURE SETS, HOME DECOR, FIRE-PITS, WASHING MACHINE, DRYERS, EXERCISE EQUIPMENT, MUCH MORE!!! PICK UP MON/TUES 00000 BRICKYARD DRIVE MADERA CA 00000 <URL>

#2 – Samsung/Verizon

Hey <NAME> its Stacy with Victra Verizon. Verizon just dropped this Samsung deal and I wanted to share it with you. Check this out! For as low as <MONEY> /mo you can get ALL 0 of these devices: Galaxy S00 Galaxy Watch0 00mm Galaxy Tab S0 FE Hint Great Mothers Day Gift idea here. Locations: <URL> Qualifying phone trade-in (cracked screens OK!) and Premium Unlimited plan required. Limited time. Conditions apply. Details in-store.

#3 – Pizza Hut

happy mothers day with love from pizza hut buy a large pizza get a jumbo coke mug freemugs until stocks lastonly valid today order via <URL>

More Mother’s Day Scam Shopping Sites

From April 17^th to May 8^th, our research team detected and blocked 542,307 fake Mother’s Day shopping websites around the world. Keep an eye out for these red flags:

Red Flags of an Online Shop Scam

• The acceptance of unusual payment methods (wire transfer/mobile payment apps etc.).
• Unreasonable requests for detailed personal information.
• Typos and questionable wording.
• Lack of genuine reviews/lots of irrelevant reviews.
• Too-good-to-be-true deals.

For more tips on spotting fake online shops, please check out this article.

 Top Mother’s Day Scam Websites

• agena-milky[.]com
• anuyn[.]com
• nicoroses[.]com
• foryourcustom[.]com
• cravefancy[.]com
• creationsgift[.]com
• cygnetstar[.]shop
• daisynecklace[.]com

Top Tips to Shop Safely Online

• Shop only on legitimate online stores and platforms.
• Do your homework and read reviews about the online store you plan to shop with.
• Be alerted with Trend Micro ID Protection if any of your PII gets leaked.   
• NEVER click links or attachments from unknown sources. Use Trend Micro Check to combat scams with ease! (It’s 100% FREE.)

Wishing all the Moms a great Mother’s Day! And if you’ve found this article an interesting and/or helpful read, please SHARE it with friends and family to help keep the online community secure and protected. Also, please consider leaving a comment to share your online shopping experience with us or LIKE below.