Dubai: How to stop Christmas from being merry for con artists

Festive season means family time, travelling moments and shopping. Visa’s Payment Ecosystem Risk and Control (PERC) published a security alert focusing on the scams and fraud tactics you should know before committing to the fun of the holidays.

All They Want For Christmas… Is You: This year, fraudsters are looking for dynamic information to help compromise your account. As many financial apps require one-time-pass codes to log in, scammers are trying to phish for those codes. Fraudsters are posing as bank and government employees to call to “confirm” the code – and then using the code to take over the account, taking both money and data.

Scammer Claus is Comin’ to Town: Crooks are also putting themselves on the naughty list by creating spoofed apps or websites to trick consumers into giving up their data.

Scammers Steal: This year, due to the increased security and investment in payment networks, physical theft is on the rise. Scammers are looking to steal credit cards and phones in crowded holiday markets, malls and stores, hoping to make a purchase before you notice you’ve been robbed.

Turbulent Travel Plans: With millions travelling during the holidays, scammers target hotels, vacation and airline industries to steal data and money. Fake travel websites, which lure customers with low prices, upcharge for amenities and then cut off communication with would-be-travellers, leaving them stranded and out of money have become commonplace. Call centre scams use malvertising to promote fake sites leading to victims chatting with “customer service” to steal payment details and personal information. Another scam fraudsters are using this holiday season involves a fraudster impersonating a travel company to send a false cancellation email, asking for credit card information to “rebook” a flight.

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