Beware of Black Friday scams

A message from Evie Pugh, Derbyshire Constabulary’s Digital Communications Development Assistant, on the subject of Black Friday scams.

As all our inboxes are full of emails offering discounts in the lead-up to Black Friday, our fraud-fighting sock puppet Claude pops back up to warn against ‘too good to be true’ deals.

Spear phishing is when scammers do their research on a target and personalise a message, to try to trick the victim into clicking a link or providing personal details.

Watch the video on our YouTube channel: Claude rocks up to music studio to deliver phishing scam advice in #SockItToTheScammers – YouTube

The email or message can be very convincing. It may address you by name, pretend to be from a friend or family member, or offer a specialised deal that appeals to your interests or business.

Clicking the link can allow the scammer to install malware on your device, which can pick out personal or financial details and send them to the criminal.

Fraud Protect Officer Tammy Barnes explains how combat the fraudsters: “By taking a moment to stop before clicking or replying, you can give yourself time to think and question the email.

“If it’s offering a deal, can you verify this on the company’s website? If the message is reportedly from someone you know, can you verify it via a trusted means?

“If you’re worried that a scammer has your details, please remember to report it to Action Fraud.”

Up-to-date antivirus software on your devices can also help protect against scams like these, as well as ensuring that you have two factor authentication on all your accounts.

Further information and tips are available on our website: Online shopping | Derbyshire Constabulary.

Tammy added: “If you’re not expecting the email or message our advice is to ignore it. Never click on links or reply until you’ve verified that it is legitimate.

Suspect a scam? Always remember to Stop! Think! Tell!

For more information visit our website: Remember Claude when trying to bag a bargain this Black Friday | Derbyshire Constabulary