Credit card scams: what to watch out for this holiday season

Credit card scams are rampant, especially now that the holiday shopping season is in full swing.

Scammers are deploying various tactics to carry out these types of scams, including using credit card skimming machines to spread false messages about fraudulent or unauthorized charges.

Especially during the holiday season, “scammers try to cash in on people looking for a good deal by creating fake websites where their favorite brands appear to be selling for incredible prices,” said Michael Jabbara, global head of fraud services at Visa. FOX Business.

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Over the past four months, Visa identified a 284% increase in fake and counterfeit business websites compared to the previous four-month period, according to Jabbara.

“These websites sometimes look identical to the merchants they are counterfeiting, so it is very important for consumers to independently verify that they are on the website they think they are on,” Jabbara added.

Over the past four months, Visa identified a 284% increase in fake and counterfeit business websites compared to the previous four-month period. (/iStock)

There has also been a dramatic increase in scam merchants posing as legitimate charities. While some scammers create spoofed versions of legitimate charities, others create fake charities with plausible-sounding names.

Consumers should also be wary of any text messages that claim there has been a fraudulent charge on their credit card.

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If consumers receive a text message informing them that there has been a fraud charge, scammers will typically request their password or other information via text message.

“Your credit card company will simply never do this over email or text,” Ted Jenkin, co-founder of oXYGen Financial, told FOX Business. “The easiest thing to do is pick up the phone, call the 800 number on the back of your card and validate what you received on your phone.”

The American Bankers Association has also warned consumers about “card cracking,” which occurs when consumers respond to an online request for quick and easy ways to get money.

Criminals will leverage social media platforms like Instagram to lure consumers and convince them to share their debit card or bank account information to withdraw fake check deposits.

Instead, criminals will deposit worthless checks via mobile deposit and immediately withdraw the funds at an ATM, according to the ABA.

Another thing consumers should be wary of are ATM skimmer devices, which are inserted into the card reader or installed inside the terminal.

Skimmers can also fit over the terminal’s card reader or be located along exposed wires on stand-alone ATMs. Fraudsters will use pinhole cameras installed in or around ATMs to record a customer’s PIN entry, or they may use keylogging keyboard overlays, which record a customer’s keystrokes.

Theft, along with phishing and identity theft, are the three most common credit card frauds securities attorney Andrew Stoltmann has dealt with over the years.

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“One of the most common scams is when people receive a text message that appears to be from UPS or FedEx. They then click on it and people have access to the phone or are asked to confirm with a credit card which card it was. real credit to use the purchase,” he said, adding that this is “particularly compelling during the holiday season, when so many people send packages.”