Phishing

Think Before You Click: How to Spot Online Shopping Scams Online shopping is convenient, but it’s also become a hunting ground for scammers. The latest FBI Internet Crime Report shows that consumers lost tens of millions of dollars to online shopping scams in 2024 alone. And according to a recent article from VA News, these scams are growing more sophisticated — targeting not just the elderly, but anyone browsing deals on social media, email, or even official-looking websites. ...

1 in 3 Americans Have Been Scammed While Shopping Online – Here’s How to Protect Yourself If you shop online regularly, you have likely come across a deal that seemed too good to be true, a seller with no track record, or a payment request that felt off. According to a November 2025 Pew Research Center survey, about a third of Americans say they’ve had an online shopping scam happen to them. That figure has stayed relevant through mid‑2026 as holiday shopping season nears. Understanding the most common tricks and knowing what to do before and after a purchase can help you avoid becoming part of that statistic. ...

How to Spot Online Shopping Scams: Tips from the VA and FTC Online shopping has become second nature for most of us, but it also comes with risks. Scammers are constantly refining their tactics, and government agencies like the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the FBI regularly update their warnings. Whether you’re a veteran, a military family member, or just someone trying to buy a gift online, knowing how to recognize a scam can save you money and frustration. ...

One in Three Americans Hit by an Online Shopping Scam: What You Need to Know to Stay Safe If you shop online, you’ve probably wondered how many people actually fall for those too-good-to-be-true deals or fake storefronts. According to a November 2025 survey from the Pew Research Center, about a third of American adults say they’ve personally experienced an online shopping scam. That’s roughly 33 percent of U.S. adults—a number that should give any regular online buyer pause. ...

What Microsoft’s Year of Email Security Data Reveals About Modern Threats Every day, billions of emails cross the internet, and a significant slice of those are malicious. Microsoft recently published a year-long analysis of email security data collected through Microsoft Defender, offering a rare look at the real-world scale and shape of email threats. While the report is aimed at IT administrators, there are concrete lessons for anyone who uses email — which is to say, almost everyone. ...

How to Spot and Avoid Online Shopping Scams (1 in 3 Americans Hit) According to a November 2025 Pew Research Center survey, about a third of Americans say they have had an online shopping scam happen to them. That is not a niche problem. It affects a broad cross-section of consumers, though younger adults and frequent online shoppers report higher rates. ...

Email Security in 2026: What Microsoft’s Year-Long Data Set Actually Tells Us If you manage an inbox—and almost everyone does—you’ve noticed the volume of suspicious emails hasn’t let up. Phishing attempts, impersonation scams, and business email compromise are as common as ever. But what does that look like at scale? ...

One in Three Americans Reports an Online Shopping Scam: What to Know and How to Protect Yourself If you’ve ever clicked on a too-good-to-be-true deal and ended up with nothing but an empty bank account, you’re not alone. According to a Pew Research Center study published in November 2025, about a third of Americans say they’ve had an online shopping scam happen to them. That’s roughly 33% of U.S. adults who have lost money or had their personal information stolen while trying to buy something online. ...

What Microsoft’s Year-Long Email Security Study Means for Your Inbox In June 2026, Microsoft published a detailed analysis of a year’s worth of email security data collected from Microsoft Defender. The report covers how many phishing and malware emails were blocked, how quickly threats were detected, and what types of attacks are most common. While the data comes from Microsoft’s own systems (and reflects their perspective), it offers a useful snapshot of the current threat landscape for anyone who relies on email—which is essentially everyone. ...

1 in 3 Americans Have Been Scammed While Shopping Online: How to Protect Yourself A new survey from the Pew Research Center finds that roughly one in three U.S. adults have fallen victim to an online shopping scam at some point. With holiday shopping season underway, that number is a reminder to review your habits before clicking “buy.” ...