Shoppers are being urged to stay alert during Black Friday as scammers target the holiday season, taking advantage of increased online shopping activity. Amazon has alerted over 300 million customers about fake messages, misleading ads, and fraudulent offers designed to trick consumers.
Experts from National Trading Standards (NTS) explain that fraudsters operate on a “percentage game,” knowing many people shop on platforms like Amazon. Fake delivery notifications, account warnings, and too-good-to-be-true offers are commonly used to lure unsuspecting buyers. So far, millions of shoppers have fallen victim, with 6.4 million losing money to scams and 100 million purchases made based on misleading reviews.
Amazon warns customers to watch for fake messages claiming to be about deliveries or account issues, suspicious social media ads, and messages through unofficial channels asking for passwords or payment information. Links directing users to phishing websites or unsolicited calls from supposed tech support are also common tactics. The company emphasizes that it will never request verification of credentials via email, encouraging shoppers to use only official Amazon channels to make purchases and check account information.
