Tips to protect yourself from Black Friday scams

What was a big sales day in the United States, Black Fridayin Spain it has become practically month of offers, discounts as well as thousands of emails, SMS, TV and online advertisements, and links to WhatsApp and Telegram. A a flurry of offers to spend your money at the door of Christmas celebrations. And, unfortunately, everything that succeeds is ultimately used for fraud and deception. This is the case with many Black Friday scams.

In this case I do not mean the fact that, according to consumer associations, the vast majority of offers and discounts Black Friday is not like that. And many do not follow the current rules. Moreover, the discounts we see outside the United States have nothing in common with those that occur there during the classic Friday sale. But as I said, in this article we will focus on Black Friday scams and scams. Those who use the claim of this very important day to sell us something that is not there, or, directly, by deception, keep your money.

The maelstrom of compulsive shopping that occurs during Black Friday is the perfect breeding ground for self-satiation. dangerous or harmful linksenter phishing attacks phishing and all types of social engineering strategies designed to send money to someone you don’t owe or directly give me your bank details cybercriminal. But with common sense, caution and the following tips, you can spend your money on Black Friday deals. safe and no surprises unpleasant. Except realizing that what you bought wasn’t worth it.

Offers, discounts and unwanted advertising

Let’s start with the moment before you buy anything on Black Friday. Black Friday has two elements: shopping and sales. That is, we must be careful when purchasing and with offers and discounts we found. Black Friday scams also abound leading up to the day in question. You’ve probably received messages with offers and discounts over the past month. Via WhatsApp, SMS, email, social networks such as Facebook, Instagram, X…And while most of them may come from the original source, some may not be who they say they are.

• Don’t open links from the unknown or unwanted. This includes QR codes.
• Avoid dismiss something without permission or entry scam pages
• This also serves to unwanted calls or for Internet advertising
• Access to online stores directly. Avoid links or indirect advertising
• don’t share personal or banking information by phone, SMS or WhatsApp
• Compare offer obtained from the official page of the store or brand

And now several tips on offers and discountsregardless of whether they are a Black Friday scam:

• Devote more time small letter than loud headlines
• Don’t assume anything. Make sure the sentence says what you think it says.
• IN Subscriptionscheck if it has an expiration date or if it is final
• In products and services, check that final price no additional fees
• Compare, compare and compare again. Don’t get carried away by the first impulse
• Make sure the offer is non-negotiable warranties or other rights
• Obvious advice: be careful excessive discounts. Especially the latest products
• Big discounts are usually available on products from previous seasons

If you’re going to buy online, do it safely.

Now that we’ve covered the deals and discounts part, let’s focus on the second part – online shopping. There are also scams and scams on Black Friday. during the purchasing process. And they are related to the deceptions that we have seen before. Mainly by forcing us to go in a direction that we are not.

• Make sure that shopping app is official
• Search lock on the online purchase page
• Get information About Store: Physical adresscustomer service, return policy…
• Don’t contribute personal or bank details except the moment of purchase
• When creating a user, if this option is available, try using Google ID, Facebook, Apple or Amazon. It’s safer
• If this is not possible, Create a passworddon’t use repetitive
• Before purchasing, please make sure that Product information It’s right
• Also check final pricetransportation costs, guarantees, returns, etc.

Regarding the payment itself, a few tips and precautions:

• Make sure your purchase is made through Payment gateway safe
• Better credit card than debit, in case you have to cancel the purchase
• Purchase between peopletry using middleware platforms
• Payments via Bizum, check how much money it is and where you are sending it
• Do not accept payments through Bizum without paying close attention to Payment concept

Shopping online on Black Friday can be a safe activity if you take precautions certain security measures, typical for this type of Internet activity. Take your time and take your time. Make sure what you are buying, delivery conditions, quality and product guarantees. And the price you’re going to pay is no surprises. Also, go to reputable stores, or at least make sure they have them. Finally, if you are the victim of a scam, the National Police recommends that you “change passwordscancel Credit or debit card immediately, talk to your bank and report to the National Police.”