3 holiday email scams to watch for – and how to stay safe

During the holidays, your inbox is fuller than usual with promotions, order confirmations, and tracking information. The high volume prompts bad actors to try scamming users out of their money while making it more challenging for email providers to protect users against them. 

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As the world’s largest email provider, Google says that Gmail invests heavily in keeping its users safe, blocking spam, phishing, and malware from users’ inboxes. However, despite the protections, the company encourages users to watch for scams and to report suspicious emails such as spam and phishing. After opening an email, click the three-dot menu to see reporting options.

In particular, Google identifies three scams that are frequently used during the holiday season: invoice, celebrity, and extortion scams. 

In an invoice scam, the scammer sends a fake invoice to users, claiming the user owes them money. The hope is that the user will call to dispute the charge, and once the call is made, the scammer convinces the user to pay Although not a new tactic, it is particularly prevalent during the holiday season.

The celebrity scam, which Google says has become the most common over the past month, does exactly what it sounds like: It uses the image and likeness of a famous person or public figure to dupe users into performing certain actions. For example, a message will appear to come from the celebrity themself or have a celebrity endorse a specific product. 

Lastly, extortion scammers take a user’s personal information, such as their address or location, and threaten to release that information or inflict physical harm if not given the funds they’re demanding. 

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To avoid falling victim to any of these scams, Google encourages users to:

• Slow down because many of these scams use urgent language that tries to get you to act on panic;
• Double-check information on the emails;
• Withhold sending funds or sharing personal information; and 
• Report the scam to help other users, too.