Buy 1 gift and receive between 6–36 back? Balsam Hill 90% off sale? Win $8,000 by simply filling out an online survey? All of these are a SCAM! Christmas is just around the corner, and so are the Christmas scams. Read on for the top Christmas scams to watch out for and the best practices to stay safe this holiday season:

• Gift Exchange Scams (Secret Santa Dog)
• Christmas Shopping Scams (Fake Balsam Hill Sale)
• Fake Gift Giveaways (HEB Christmas Gift Card)

#1 – Gift Exchange Scams (Secret Santa Dog)

Gift exchanges always make the holidays better — but not all of them come with good intention. Scammers have been on social media inviting people to join their “Secret Santa Dog” gift exchange campaign, claiming that you can buy a $10 gift for your “secret dog” and receive between 6–36 gifts in return:

Well, it turns out participants will NOT receive anything back as these gift exchange campaigns are just a type of “pyramid scheme”. Even worse, participants will likely leak their personal information, such as email addresses.

Not Sure if It’s a Scam? Just Ask!

When you come across something suspicious and can’t decide if it’s a scam, you can check it with Trend Micro ScamCheck and get an immediate answer! Simply take a screenshot and send it to Scam Check — and we will take care of the rest:

To give it a try, click the button below and start checking now:

We’ve reported on similar scam attempts before, like the Secret Sister gift exchange, which is still circulating in 2024:

The themes of the campaigns might differ, but the underlying trick is the same. Don’t fall for the trap and save the gifts for your loved ones instead!

#2 – Christmas Shopping Scams (Fake Balsam Hill Sale)

Holiday is the best season for shoppers and scammers alike — you are targeting the best deals, and they are targeting you! Scammers have created numerous bogus shopping websites featuring incredible deals on Christmas gifts and other decorations to trick people. Below is an example:

These fake websites are often advertised on social networks, websites, or sent in messaging apps, posted as urgent, time-bound sales to make you feel you have to purchase the offer right away or lose out on the sale.

However, if you make purchases on these fake websites, you may never receive your order and could lose your money and personal information, such as your email address and credit card number.

Hint: check the web address. The legitimate one is balsamhill.com. Here’s some common red flags of a scammy online shop to look out for:

• Too-Good-to-Be-True deals
• Poor design, typos, and insecure payment methods.
• Lack of or Suspicious Contact Info
• Lack of secure Payment options like credit cards.
• Unclear Return or Shipping

#3 – Fake Gift Giveaways (HEB Christmas Gift Card)

Impersonating trusted brands, scammers are spreading phishing links via texts, emails, and social media, inventing various excuses to prompt you into clicking the links within. One of the most common tactics they use during holiday season is fake giveaway campaigns. Below is an example:

We’ve seen scammers posing as H-E-B, a famous retailer based in Texas, falsely offering an $8,000 gift card to “lucky shoppers”. The phishing link will lead to a fake online survey page that is designed to collect your detailed personal information, including home address, email, and finacial credentials:

Unfortunately, you will never receive any rewards. Instead, scammers will commit identity theft and potentially leak your data onto the dark web. Watch out!

H-E-B has already published an official alert to warn customers about this fake Christmas gift giveaway campaign, stressing that H-E-B will never ask for customers’ details in this manner. They also mention that the only legitimate platform hosting giveaway campaigns will be their official website (HEB.com).

How to Stay Safe this Holiday Season

• Beware of Big Discounts. Extremely low prices are a red flag for scam sites.
• Verify the legitimacy of a retailer before placing an order.
• Don’t click on links or buttons from unknown sources.
• Always double-check the URL and ensure the web address matches the legitimate retailer’s URL exactly.
• Verify any giveway campaigns and shopping promotions directly through the official website or customer service.
• Use secure payment options such as credit cards or services like PayPal for added protection.

Protect Yourself Against Scams with ScamCheck

With the sheer number of scams and scammers that are out there, staying one step ahead is more crucial than ever. Introducing the newly updated TrendMicro ScamCheck! Available for both Android and iOS, ScamCheck offers comprehensive protection from scam websites, scam and spam text messages, deepfakes, and more:

• SMS Filter & Call Block: Say goodbye to unwanted spam and scam calls and messages. Minimize daily disruptions and reinforce your defenses against phishing.
• Scam Check: Instantly analyze emails, texts, URLs, screenshots, and phone numbers with our AI-powered scam detection technology. Stay secure and scam-free.
• Deepfake Scan: Detect deepfakes in real-time during video calls, alerting you if anyone is using AI face-swapping technology to alter their appearance.
• Web Guard: Surf the web safely, protected from malicious websites and annoying ads.

To download Trend Micro ScamCheck or to learn more, click the button below.

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