It is officially the holiday season. And the Internet makes it so easy and convenient for us to purchase holiday presents. (Indeed, I must confess, I already have shopped on Amazon and have bought dozens of presents for my family members.) In fact, this user-friendliness, as opposed to trudging out and waiting in lines at stores, might result in the purchase of even more presents than otherwise.
But, and there always seems to be a “but,” as reported recently by USA Today, cybercriminals have been lurking in the vicinity of Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the overall holiday season.
Cybercriminals Take Aim at Holiday Shoppers
What have they been up to? They have been busy inundating the Internet with emails, social media postings and search results that contain links that offer pitches for various scams and worthless products.
This is not nice. It’s downright naughty. Cybercriminals go where the money is, and unquestionably plenty of money heads in the direction of online holiday purchases.
Emails containing spoofed delivery confirmations and order notices allegedly from brand-name companies such as Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Target, Toys”R”Us, FedEx, UPS, and DHL reportedly have been on the rise as we move into the holiday season. If a user clicks on a link provided, the user may relinquish control of his or her computer to a cybercriminal.
Smartphones Present Greatest Risk
Smartphones reportedly are the least secure purchasing platform, with USA Today reporting 1.3 percent of sales on them being fraudulent, as compared to 0.8 percent fraudulent sales on desktop computers and 0.5 percent fraudulent sales on tablets.
Holiday online shoppers need to be careful. They should exercise a healthy dose of caution with respect to information they receive soliciting holiday shopping. And they should shop at trusted Web sites.
With a bit of care and skepticism, we can have a wonderful holiday season, replete with legitimate online holiday gift purchases.
Ho, ho, ho!
Eric Sinrod is a partner in the San Francisco office of Duane Morris LLP, where he focuses on litigation matters of various types, including information technology and intellectual property disputes. You can read his professional biography here. To receive a weekly email link to Mr. Sinrod’s columns, please email him at ejsinrod@duanemorris.com with Subscribe in the Subject line. This column is prepared and published for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. The views expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the author’s law firm or its individual partners.