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Why the holidays are peak scam season

Give you and your family the gift of peace, not problems. The twelve scams our concierge team sees every holiday season — and how to stay ahead of each one.

Holiday campaign art: a woman shopping with her phone amid festive ornaments

Why the holidays

Criminals plan their year around December. Inboxes fill with order confirmations, delivery alerts and charity appeals; families travel, post and shop on unfamiliar networks; and everyone is in a hurry. Each of the twelve articles in this edition takes one seasonal scam, shows what it looks like from the inside, and gives you the two or three habits that defuse it.

How to stay safe

  • Slow down the urgent

    Almost every seasonal scam manufactures urgency — a parcel held, an account locked, a deal ending. Treat urgency itself as the warning sign.

  • Go direct, not via the message

    Reach retailers, couriers, banks and charities by typing the address or opening the app yourself — never through the link that arrived.

Shop with confidence

BlackCloak protects your accounts and devices so you can shop safely. Speak to our team about concierge cybersecurity.