Holiday fraud is on the rise. Do you know the steps to protect yourself?

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After Dr. Susan Moyer came home from a busy day of pre-Black Friday shopping at Pandora with her daughters and mother, she received a text message from a family member showing a deal on an item she wanted to buy from the store. Pandora had advertised that specials were just a few days away, so the offer seemed legitimate. She clicked the link and saw dozens of deals on the site.

“It looked exactly like the Pandora site,” Moyer said. She had been on the site dozens of times over the years. She purchased the charm, then decided to buy a few more things on her Christmas list. When she tried to check out, the site spun for seconds, then minutes. She had issues with her credit card before, and with her Wi-Fi, so she decided to try again the next morning.

Alerts poured in from her bank, Navy Federal Credit Union, asking if she had made several different purchases totaling thousands of dollars. She knew the credit union’s short code from prior fraud attempts. Short codes are five- or six-digit numbers used regularly by a bank’s system. She texted back “No,” then immediately called the number on her debit card. The bank declined the fraudulent transactions. She asked the bank to close her cards.

“I didn’t even look at the HTTP string or for the lock item, because the link came from someone I know and I had been on the store site before,” she said.

According to a recent AARP study, 89% of U.S. adults have been targeted or experienced at least one form of fraud. A spring Pew survey found 85% of adults say online scams and attacks are a problem on shopping sites, with 50% saying they are a major problem.

Cyber experts say it is also getting harder to tell the difference between real and fraudulent sites because scammers are using artificial intelligence. According to the 2025 “Phishing Threat Trends” report from KnowBe4, 82.6% of all phishing emails analyzed between September 2024 and February 2025 exhibited some use of AI.

Fraud experts say the pace of the season makes people more vulnerable.

“People are shopping at a different pace. There’s a lot going on, and you’re more liable to fall for things while you’re busy and you’re getting a lot done,” said Chip Kohlweiler, senior vice president of security at Navy Federal. “The email, the sales, is more plausible in the holiday time of year, especially when everybody’s running a Cyber Monday or Black Friday sale, not just on those particular days, but for weeks long at a time.”

The financial toll is already steep across the region. According to Chase Bank, in just the first six months of 2025, it has cost people $156.5 million in Pennsylvania, $16.2 million in Delaware, and $158 million in New Jersey.

Fight fraud with small steps

One of the top protections, experts say, starts with slowing down and checking where you shop.

“If it’s too good to be true, it probably is,” Kohlweiler said.

He urges shoppers to look closely at web addresses for security signals, such as a lock icon.

“Make sure it’s got the https and the lock to make sure it’s encrypted,” he said.

Experts also warn against clicking on links in promotional emails.

“If you get an email from a merchant that you’ve done business with before and they’re offering a great special, it could very well be them, but please don’t click on the link. Go to their site directly,” Kohlweiler said.

Experts warn consumers that fake sites are becoming harder to spot.

“The bad guys do a really nice job with making the bad sites look exactly like the good sites, and it’s just getting easier and easier for them in the world of generative AI,” he said.

Chase community manager Tanyika Rickard said, “It looks exactly like the website that you’re used to shopping from.”

If something feels off, she advises consumers to stop and make a call before buying.

“Call the 1-800 number, try to contact someone who is a customer service rep before you purchase,” she said. “If you make the phone call and you’re not able to talk to someone, that’s an indication that that isn’t a legitimate website.”

Rickard said if a transaction stalls or keeps spinning, that can also be a red flag.

“So we want to shut it down right away, because the longer we have the window open for fraudsters to get into our information, the more damage can be done,” she said.

How you pay also matters.

“A credit card is better for a couple of different reasons,” Navy Federal’s Kohlweiler said. If fraud happens, “it’s the financial institution’s money,” not cash pulled straight from a checking account. Digital wallets add another layer of protection.

“When you use [wallets like] Apple Pay …, the merchant doesn’t actually get your specific card details. Those are tokenized,” he added.

Kohlweiler cautioned against saving card information on websites because most people use the same or similar usernames and passwords across sites, making it easier for fraudsters to steal credentials.

Scammers are also turning to phone calls as an entry point.

“Don’t trust your caller ID,” Kohlweiler said. Calls may appear to come from a bank, a court, or the IRS.

If something feels wrong, both institutions say to act immediately.

“If it seems like it isn’t right, shut it down right away,” Rickard said. “Call your bank and report it. Problems do not age well. We want to be proactive, not reactive.”

Education is power

Rickard encouraged families to talk openly about scams so others do not fall into the same traps.

“Share your experiences with friends,” she said. “So that you can let the masses know, these are the ways that we need to protect ourselves.”

Moyer agrees.

“Some people are ashamed about these kinds of situations; they shouldn’t be because it happens to many of us,” she said, adding that she talked to her daughters so they’re prepared for when it happens to them.

Top fraud protection tips from Navy Federal and Chase:

• Educate yourself. Check with your bank on alerts, tools and workshops they offer.
• Do not click on links in promotional emails. Go directly to the retailer’s website.
• Look for “https” and the lock icon in the address bar before entering payment information.
• Be cautious of deals that seem too good to be true.
• Use a credit card instead of a debit card when possible.
• Use digital wallets like Apple Pay or Samsung Pay to keep your card number private.
• Do not trust caller ID alone. Banks and government agencies can be spoofed.
• Set up alerts with your bank so you know when charges happen.
• Change passwords regularly and avoid reusing the same password across sites.

If fraud is suspected, stop communication, contact your bank immediately and report it. Further steps may involve filing a report with police or the Federal Trade Commission. Also consider placing a fraud alert on your credit report with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

Don’t be ashamed. You are not alone. More than 387,000 reports of fraud involving online shopping were filed in the United States in 2024, according to the FTC.

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