New statistics show a disproportionate increase in scams and fraud following Black Friday and Cyber Monday as more people are shopping online for discounted products.
Netsafe warns this next week is not just a big one for shoppers but criminals too.
Fake sales are just one thing to look out for as more people head out to buy Christmas presents. More people are also falling victim to scams, fraud and ‘dud products’.
"People are out there shopping, people are excited to be getting a bargain, scammers put bargains in front of them and they get hooked on one of them,” says Netsafe Chief Executive Martin Crocker.
In the period following Cyber Monday last year, there was a 43 per cent increase in complaints of ‘non-existent products’.
Identity fraud increased by 265 per cent compared to a normal week and credit or debit card fraud spiked by a massive 500 per cent.
There's also a growing problem in New Zealand with ‘drop shipping’ - where a website appears to be based in New Zealand featuring a local company but the products featured are actually coming from overseas - meaning getting them into the country can become a bit of an ordeal.
“It's obviously much better to shop at the source of a product than someone else who is re-selling it - even if that person's giving you the same price - but if you need the support service you want to go to the originator of that product,” Crocker says.
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