The festive season is supposed to be a time of peace and goodwill. Unfortunately, it’s also plagued with scams. Scammers take advantage of the fact that many people vary their routines around the holiday time. This makes unusual behaviour less obvious (and hence easier to hide).
On the plus side, forewarned is forearmed. With that in mind, here are some tips on how to keep yourself safe from scammers over the Christmas season. They work the rest of the year too.
Always make sure you know who you’re dealing with
Many scams work by leading the victim to believe that they’re dealing with a legitimate authority. The ones that don’t typically exploit people’s natural sympathy for those in distress. This is often particularly high around Christmas time.
To protect yourself from both, therefore, you need to make sure you always know who you’re really dealing with. If possible, ask for ID. Do not ever accept uniforms and/or standard name badges as proof of identity. If you are shown ID, verify it against a known number. Do not just use one the person gives you. If you don’t know the real number, look it up.
If you’re on the phone with someone, get their details, if possible verify them and then call them back on a number you know to be secure. For example, if someone calls saying they are from your bank, end the call and call them back on the bank’s number.
Likewise, on the internet, do not take any contact details you see as being guaranteed. Do not reply directly to any message you receive. Instead, open a new message and enter a known address. If necessary, copy and paste any relevant details into the new message.
Keep on top of your daily business
Two common scams are especially prevalent at Christmas. These are missing parcel scams and fake debt scams.
Missing parcel scams
Missing parcel scams generally operate by text. They usually have two key giveaways. Firstly, the text message comes from an unidentified number. Secondly, the link has an unusual structure. Scammers often shorten links to disguise this fact. You can, however (and should), lengthen any short link before you even think about clicking it.
Scammers will not know your order number so the one they quote will almost certainly be different from the real one. It can therefore be helpful to keep a record of the order numbers for any purchases you make. Also, ask people you know to give you the order numbers for anything they send you.
Fake debt scams
Fake debt scams generally work by text or email. They can, however, sometimes be conducted by phone. Your situation will determine how easy or difficult it is to identify a fake debt scam.
In short, if you are in control of your finances, then you will know that any calls about debts have to be fake. If you are not, then you may struggle to determine if a contact is real or fake.
Being in control of your finances does not mean being debt-free. It just means being on top of any payments you need to make. If you are struggling to meet these payments, then reach out to the lender/creditor.
If your difficulties are more serious, then reach out for professional help and make lenders/creditors aware that you have done so. Consider seeing if you qualify for a debt breathing space.
Do not let yourself be pressured
Many scammers try to put their victims under pressure. This makes it harder for them to think through a situation carefully and exercise sound judgement. Do not fall for this. Take all the time you need and be very suspicious of anyone who tries to hurry you.
