Australian shoppers, gearing up for the highly anticipated Black Friday sales, are being cautioned against fake online shopping deals. With an estimated $6.36 billion expected to be spent during the sales event, the National Anti-Scam Centre has noted a surge in reports of counterfeit websites imitating prominent brands.
This year alone, Australians have reported 2760 instances of fraudulent online stores, resulting in losses exceeding $500,000. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's Deputy Chair, Catriona Lowe, highlighted the sophisticated tactics employed by scammers. These include using intricate designs, unauthorized brand logos, and even legitimate-looking “.com.au” domain names and stolen Australian Business Numbers.
Many of these dubious sites lure customers with the promise of luxury items at significantly reduced prices. In some cases, consumers receive counterfeit products, or, worse, nothing at all. Lowe emphasized the increased efforts by scammers to capitalize on the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping frenzy, noting the alarming trend of such fake sites appearing atop internet search results.
The National Retail Association forecasts that approximately 10% of the total holiday season expenditure will occur from Black Friday to Cyber Monday. A Finder survey revealed that nearly one-third of Australians plan to shop during this period.
Several red flags
Lowe advises shoppers to familiarize themselves with the official site addresses of their preferred brands to avoid fraudulent sites. ScamWatch has outlined several red flags to watch for, including non-secure web addresses (lacking 'https'), urgent sales tactics, overly attractive deals, and requests for payment through insecure methods like wire transfers, gift cards, or cryptocurrency.
Consumers are urged to remain vigilant and conduct thorough research before making any online purchases during this high-risk period.