Gmail tells us what the most common Christmas email scams are and how to avoid them

Christmas festivities in the online world come with more than digital greeting cards, gift lists within online stores or apps to enjoy this Christmas to the fullest. The season is emerging as one of the favorites for cybercriminals to take their scams to the maximum. Gmail knows it.

Although the forms that these bad practices can take are many in the digital field, it is true that malicious mailing campaigns are some of the most frequent.

Gmail debuts design: Here are the news that have just arrived

The haste to find promotions, discounts and benefits as a customer are some of the situations that computer criminals take advantage of to defraud users, where communication via email is a valuable resource due to its scope and possibilities to obtain all data class.

The numbers don’t lie. Data provided by Google indicates that on a typical day the company blocks almost 15 billion unwanted messages from Gmail, blocking more than 99.9 percent of spam, phishing and malware.

However, this scenario appears more challenging as we approach the end of the year. In the first two weeks of this year’s discount season in November alone, Gmail blocked more than 231 billion spam messages, 10 percent more than the average volume.

In this sense, it is worth recognizing which are the most common Christmas scams that are spread via email, as well as some tips to avoid becoming another victim.

Gmail these are the most common Christmas email scams

In this way, the Google Workspace Trust & Safety team has disclosed 5 types of
disguised scams that we must be aware of, as well as a series of simple recommendations to avoid falling victim to them.

The most common scams at Christmas

Gift cards and giveaways: A classic where scammers ask to buy and send a gift card to a known contact. In another modality, a free prize is offered in exchange for sharing your credit card information.

Charities: Donations are also an important hook this season. According to Gmail, you should pay “attention to any messages from organizations asking you to contact them at a personal email or asking you to send them money directly.”

Demographic targets: Some of the most dangerous scams, according to Gmail, are those that specifically target the user. That is, those that include some specific element of his life or
identity and that in this season are very common.

Subscription Renewals: Whether from any streaming service, gaming or software services such as antivirus, some scammers can make their message look very convincing, so that the victim delivers more than one personal and bank information

Crypto-scams: Something new, but increasingly common that has to do with using a cryptocurrency wallet to make the payment and often they try to extort the victim through threats.

How to avoid being a victim?

Given these scenarios, the Gmail team shares three key recommendations to avoid being scammed this Christmas:

• Take your time. Scams are often designed to create a sense of urgency. Take as much time as you need to ask questions and think about it.
• Punctual control. Do your research to verify the details you are receiving. Does what they are telling you make sense?
• Stop! do not send. No reputable person or agency will demand payment or your personal information on the spot.