Visa, in a new report released on Thursday, warned card users of impending threats from fraudsters during this holiday shopping season.
The digital payments company advised cardholders making both card-present (CP) and card-not-present (CNP) transactions to stay alert as scam activity heightens during the holiday season.
Data from the report showed that fraud rates in the 2022 holiday season increased by 11 per cent over non-holiday fraud rates in the same year.
According to Visa, threat actors take advantage of the rapid increase in e-commerce activities, in-person spending across retail and hospitality, and urgency in finding deals to scam shoppers during the holiday seasons.
“Crooks prepare all year for the holiday shopping season, taking advantage of increased activity and consumers who let their guard down searching for the perfect gift,” Visa Chief Risk Officer Paul Fabara stated.
These fraudsters employ advanced schemes to exploit consumers’ information, which has in the past proved to be among the most used ways of acquiring personal data.
“At Visa, we are committed to security and reliability, with a promise of 24/7 threat monitoring, even during the busiest time of the year. Consumers can rest easy this holiday season knowing Visa’s team of experts is working around the clock to stop fraud in its tracks,” Fabara assured.
Fraud tactics customers should be on the lookout for include;
OTP Bypass and Provisioning Fraud
Visa pointed out that there was a rise in schemes used to bypass one-time passcodes. Fraudsters use the schemes to gain a cardholder’s account information and then send fake templates that resemble their desired purchase.
Phishing and Social Engineering
With advancements in the artificial intelligence (AI) field, scammers are now able to come up with well-customised campaigns, making it harder for consumers to spot illegitimate ones.
Visa also highlighted that fraudsters use malicious advertising and illegal search engine optimisation tactics on retail websites to attract unaware consumers to their phishing websites.
Physical theft
Thieves can physically steal payment cards or phones from consumers in crowded malls or retail shops.
Tactics to Help Consumers Shop Securely
Avoid using public Wi-Fi when making payments digitally
Most public Wi-Fi are unsecured, thus making it easy for hackers to access personal information. Instead, use secured private Wi-Fi or mobile data.
Be aware of deals that are too good to be true
Scam retail shops give outrageous discounts that attract consumers to their sites or online shops.
Shop from verified and well-known retailers. Always confirm customer testimonials before purchasing items from stores you’re not familiar with to confirm their legitimacy.
Ensure websites are secure and your data is being encrypted before putting personal information during checkout for online retail shops. Safe website addresses should start with 'https', where 's' stands for secure.
Always Check Details in the OTP Message: Verify purchase details such as transaction amount and merchant store. OTPs should not be shared via messengers, emails or phone SMS as they can easily be intercepted by hackers.
