Holiday shopping scams are booming — here’s how to protect your wallet

Online shopping has made holiday gift-buying convenient, but it’s also become a feeding ground for scammers. According to the Federal Trade Commission, Americans reported losing $12.5 billion to fraud in 2024 — a record high. And the holiday season, with its flood of deals and stretched shoppers, is prime time for schemes ranging from fake websites to phishing emails that look like delivery notifications. This article walks through the most common holiday shopping scams and gives concrete steps to avoid them, based on FTC warnings and consumer protection advice.

What happened

The FTC’s 2024 fraud data shows a sharp increase in losses compared to prior years (annual losses topped $10 billion in 2023 and $8.8 billion in 2022). While the agency tracks all types of fraud, online shopping scams consistently spike during the holiday season. The FTC’s Consumer Advice pages have highlighted several recurring patterns:

  • Fake online stores — websites that look like legitimate retailers (or create entirely fictional stores) and take payments without delivering goods.
  • Social media ads — targeted promotions for “too good to be true” products, often from unknown brands.
  • Gift card scams — where a seller or “customer service” representative demands payment via gift cards, which are nearly impossible to trace.
  • Package delivery phishing — emails or texts pretending to be from FedEx, UPS, or the USPS that ask you to click a link to reschedule a delivery, but the link steals your login credentials or installs malware.

These scams are not new, but they evolve each year to look more convincing. During the 2024 holiday season, for instance, the FTC specifically warned about scammers impersonating major retailers like Amazon, Walmart, and Target in phishing emails that mention “order confirmation” or “account problem.”

Why it matters

For many people, holiday shopping means buying from unfamiliar websites to snag a deal or find a unique gift. That’s exactly what scammers count on. The financial impact isn’t just the lost purchase amount — victims also risk identity theft if they entered credit card numbers, addresses, or other personal data on a fake site.

The FTC notes that younger adults (ages 20–39) report losing money to online shopping scams more often than older age groups, possibly because they do more shopping online and rely more on social media ads. But the consequences can affect anyone. In addition to direct financial loss, dealing with fraud takes time, stress, and sometimes requires freezing credit or disputing charges with your bank.

What readers can do

The FTC offers clear recommendations that can dramatically lower your risk. Here are the steps that matter most:

  1. Stick with known retailers when possible. If you’re buying from a site you’ve never heard of, search for the store’s name plus “scam” or “review” to see complaints. The FTC also suggests checking whether the site lists a physical address and a working customer service number.

  2. Use a credit card for online purchases. Credit cards generally offer stronger fraud protection than debit cards or payment apps like Venmo and Zelle. If a scammer charges your credit card, you can dispute the charge and often get your money back. With debit cards, the money leaves your account immediately and recovery is harder.

  3. Watch for red flags in deals — prices that are significantly lower than elsewhere, demand for immediate payment or gift cards, and poor website design (typos, missing privacy policies). Scammers often use urgency to push you into a quick decision.

  4. Avoid clicking links in unsolicited messages about package deliveries, order confirmations, or account problems. Instead, go directly to the carrier’s or retailer’s official website and check your account there. This prevents you from landing on a phishing site.

  5. Do not pay for items using wire transfers, cryptocurrency, or gift cards. Legitimate sellers will never ask for these methods. If a seller insists, it’s almost certainly a scam.

  6. Monitor your accounts — check bank and credit card statements regularly during and after the holiday season. Set up transaction alerts if your bank offers them. The sooner you spot an unauthorized charge, the easier it is to fix.

If you do fall victim, report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Also contact your bank or credit card issuer immediately. In serious cases where personal information was stolen, consider freezing your credit with the three major bureaus (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion).

Sources

  • FTC Consumer Advice: How to avoid an online shopping scam this holiday season (November 2025)
  • FTC Data Spotlight: New FTC Data Show a Big Jump in Reported Losses to Fraud to $12.5 Billion in 2024 (March 2025)
  • FTC Consumer Advice: Don’t let scammers get in the way of your holiday shopping (November 2024)
  • FTC Press Release: As Nationwide Fraud Losses Top $10 Billion in 2023, FTC Steps Up Efforts to Protect the Public (February 2024)
  • FTC Consumer Advice: Top scams of 2024 (March 2025)

Holiday shopping doesn’t have to be stressful. By staying aware of the common scam tactics and following a few simple precautions, you can keep your money and your personal information safe through the season.