With billions expected to be spent across the long Black Friday / Cyber Monday weekend, PlayStation, Nike and Apple, especially for their AirPods range, are the retailers most likely to be targeted for “brand abuse” according to Brandshield.
“We anticipate cybercriminal activity targeting online shoppers to intensify further this year, and we have already begun seeing an uptick of fraudulent product listings and websites.
The critical holiday shopping period calls for even more vigilance by consumers to make sure they are not giving up sensitive personal or financial information to fraudsters looking to capitalise on deal seekers.”
Yoav Keren, CEO, BrandShield
Tell-tale signs that you are being scammed include glaring typos on websites and in promotional emails and randomly-received text or social media messages offering fantastic deals. All of this is coinciding with supply shortages resulting in underwhelming offers and what seems to be a backlash against the whole Black Friday concept, with reports that deals offered are matched or bettered by the same brands and retailers at other times in the year.
“Consumers are likely to be underwhelmed by this year’s Black Friday offering despite it inevitably boosting High Street and online sales. Retailers have long been keen to water down any pre-Christmas discounting, with the now near month-long nature of Black Friday designed to keep prices up, protect margins and avoid a race to the bottom”
Aled Patchett, Head of Retail and Consumer Goods, Lloyds Bank
“Though there isn’t a major focus on Black Friday activity at Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City, this date usually marks the start of the Christmas shopping season for our retailers.
In addition to offers and events, brands that have invested in experience-led retail such as new technologies, personalised services and gamified shopping experiences, are also expected to perform well with 81% of consumers telling us they’re willing to pay more for this kind of experience.”
Scott Parsons, COO, Westfield
Source: The Evening Standard
Join Informed Sauce’s ransomware awareness session on 2 December in London. Short talks from the Met Police’s Cyber Crime Unit, Commvault and Infinidat will be followed by a room-wide, moderated open forum discussion on how to combat the scourge of cyber crime and best protect your business.
For details and to sign up, visit the event microsite – https://informedsauce.com/events/infinidat/anatomy-of-a-ransomware-attack