How to avoid getting scammed on Cyber Monday

'Tis the season for shopping online. According to a recent Ebates/Harris poll, 80% of all shoppers plan to make an electronic purchase this year. Nearly half of those folks plan to do most of their shopping online. You know what that means: Wherever the majority of people are looking for a great deal, cyber-criminals are lurking for a great steal. Here are the big scams to look out for on Cyber Monday and beyond.

Malicious mobile malware
More people than ever are using smartphones to scan coupons and find great deals these days. In fact, a recent National Retail Federation (NRF) survey found that 52.6% of U.S. consumers who own a smartphone plan to use it for holiday-shopping-related activities, whether it's to research products, redeem coupons, or purchase holiday gifts. While using certain shopping apps can save you time and money, it can also open the door to identity theft and malware aimed at stealing all the personal information you store on your phone, including photos, bank account information, and emails.

Who's most at risk? Security software company McAfee cites a 76% increase in malware targeted at Android devices — making it the most targeted smartphone platform. But McAfee and other security firms say the iPhone is getting targeted more and more now, too.

Quick response codes, those two-dimensional bar codes being used by retailers everywhere, can take you right to a fantastic deal at a website, a specific product coupon, or the laps of the cyber-criminals. When scanning a QR code with your smartphone, whether from a magazine, inside a store, a store front, or bus stop, make sure there's not a sticker placed over the original. Also, download an app from an official app store (iTunes or the Android Market) that lets you preview the QR code first. I use an app called RedLaser.

Cause for suspicion
If the QR code points you toward a suspicious-looking URL, one with strange extensions such as .exe or with the @ symbol in the middle of the address like "iPad2@greatdeals.info.exe.jpg," you know it's most likely a scam. QR codes should take you to a legitimate website that you've heard of before; if what comes up looks strange in any way, you should avoid it.

Another kind of dirty download tactic is bogus ringtones and holiday wallpaper offers. If you get any kind of unsolicited text message or email asking you to download Justin Beiber's latest Christmas song, Santa 3D wallpaper, or packing slip for a UPS delivery that you just missed, just don't do it. Millions of people get sucked in every holiday by pretend freebies. If something really is coming to you that's free, you won't be asked to do a survey, download anything, or call a special phone number. Remember, only download apps from official app stores or directly from trusted merchant's own site. If it sounds fishy, it likely is.

One of the easiest ways to protect yourself is to think of your mobile device the same way you think of your personal computer. As I've said before, most people don't think twice about getting virus and malware protection on their laptop or desktop these days, so get it on your smartphone or tablet as well. It's a smart way to spend a little money (less than $100) and save yourself a lot of potential headaches.

Fake Facebook and Twitter Promotions
Social media sites are great places for companies large and small to create targeted promotions. Unfortunately, they are also great places for scammers to post phony promotions aimed at grabbing your information and money. Often, the posts appear to be from friends, but they are actually spam messages distributed through malicious code.

Once you click on the link and arrive at the scam page, you are asked to "share" the promotion by clicking on a Like button that automatically posts to your wall with the scam. You are then offered a choice of surveys that ask for your personal information. Your information is subsequently passed along to spam lists. Several people were duped earlier this year by a fake contest offering two free tickets on Southwest Airlines. It happens all the time.

So how can you tell a legitimate social media promotion from a fake one? Again, it goes back to the URL. Is it from a real web address belonging the company advertising the contest? If it's a gift certificate to the Cheesecake Factory, is it coming from the Cheesecake Factory's real website? The fake promotion shown to the right is from eatgoodfood.info, which is the first tip-off that it's a rip-off. Also, make sure the company name is spelled correctly. Sneaky scam artists use common misspellings of popular companies, such as "cheasecake" versus "cheesecake" or "bestbye" instead of "bestbuy" to fool people.

Also, a real social media promotion won't ask you to share personal information or require you to pass the promotion on to your friends. In other words, the tit for tat or "you do this for us and we'll give you something free" language is a giant red flag. According to Facebook's own contest guidelines, it's against the rules for companies to use the social network in such a way.

Fake bank and shipping alerts
I'm getting one fake bank or shipping alert every day in the spam folder of my email right now. The fake bank notice tells me my account has been compromised and that I need to download an attachment, print out my account information, and take in to a bank to fix. The fake UPS notice tells me that the company could not deliver a package because the delivery address was incorrect and tells me to download an attached file and take to UPS to pick up my package. Both are "urgent."

The first tip-off to a bogus alert is the sense of urgency. If you are requested to act quickly or there is an emergency, it may be a scam. Fraudsters create a sense of urgency to get you to act impulsively. In this kind of scam, you're often directed to download an attachment, follow a link, or call a number to correct the problem. While all of these may appear to be legitimate, the scammer's goal is to infect your computer or mobile device with malware and steal any personal information you're willing to provide. There's also a scam that pretends to be from a hotel you may have stayed in recently saying there's a problem with your bill.

So what should you do? Again, have virus protection on your devices, and be sure it's up to date. Don't download anything even remotely suspicious, don't call a number, and don't give out any personal information online or on the phone. If you think there might be a real problem, call your bank, hotel, or UPS directly.

"It" gift and coupon scams
Every year there are hot holiday gifts such as toys and gadgets that sell out early in the season. When a gift is hot, scammers will also start advertising these gifts, even if they don't have them. According to the FBI and BBB warnings out this year, you could wind up paying for an item only to receive nothing in return. 

One popular scam is to lure consumers with the hope of winning a free iPad. Consumers click on a phishing site, which can result in email spam and possibly dealing with identify theft. As I said on the CBS Early Show recently, you aren't going to be the first person to know about the iPad 3. You just aren't. Get over it and don't get scammed.

Always check a site's URL before making any purchase (look to make sure you're at the correct online store). Also, be sure that the page URL begins with https://, which means it's secure. Most browsers also show a padlock icon in the lower right corner of the browser window to let you know you're on a secure site.

Just say no
Several cyber security experts have reminded us lately that people tend to value convenience over security — and those lottery-winning, too-good-to-be-true promises of great deals, over good ol' common sense. In the rush and thrill of finding outstanding deals online, remember it's okay to slow down and just say no.

The same rules that apply to the offline world also apply online. Don't trust shady characters, sites, or unsolicited emails and texts. Don't go down the dark alleys of the internet expecting to find great deals. It's okay to be stingy with your personal information. Don't feel bad about saying no.

[Image credit: aeropw]

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