With Amazon’s annual Prime Day shopping extravaganza now upon us, spanning Wednesday, Oct. 08 and Thursday, Oct. 09, there are undoubtedly many bargains to be snapped up. However, shoppers are being warned to be careful as security experts have uncovered more than 100 different Prime-focused threat campaigns and nearly 900 malicious new Amazon-related web domains in the run-up to the sales. Here’s what you need to know and do to enjoy your shopping while staying safe and secure.
100 Amazon Prime Day Threat Campaigns And 900 Dodgy Domains Uncovered
Security researchers from the Check Point Research team have uncovered a staggering 100 different Amazon Prime-focused email scam campaigns and more than 1,000 newly-registered and Amazon-related domains, of which 88% of the latter were malicious in nature.
Typical of the email campaigns are those pertaining to be from Amazon Financial Services and urging the recipients to update their payment methods so as to be able to enjoy the Prime Day sales. Check Point Research has also warned that “Some scammers have gone so far as to contact Prime members directly, citing urgent account issues and soliciting payment information.”
Of every 54 new Amazon-related web domains to be registered, the researchers found that one included the phrase “Amazon Prime” and are suspected to be ready for use in phishing attacks.
Amazon Advice To Mitigate Risk Of Attack And Enjoy A Safe Prime Day Shopping Experience
Amazon has a vested interest in keeping customers safe from scammers and hackers all year round, and especially when it comes to time for Prime Day sales. After all, a customer who loses money to a scammer, or one whose account gets compromised by a hacker, is likely to be less inclined to participate in what should be an enjoyable and money-saving experience in future.
With this in mind, the e-commerce leviathan has published a list of six tips to stay safe from scams this Prime Day:
- If you receive a message regarding a purchase you have made, especially if it urges you to click a link or respond by SMS, verify the authenticity by logging into your Amazon account the way you would normally, using the Amazon smartphone app, for example, and confirm the order status that way.
- Remember that Amazon will never ask for any payments by email or phone; they will only be made through the Amazon app or website. So put your trust in those and nothing else. “We will not call and ask you to make a payment or bank transfer on another website,” Amazon said.
- Scammers will create a sense of false urgency, it’s how they encourage people to forget their cautiousness and click links. Beware of any such claims of urgency you may receive.
- Amazon will never ask you to purchase a gift card. Period. No legitimate sale will require you to pay by gift card. Period.
- If anything, at all, ever, causes you to be concerned about the legitimacy of a communication or transaction with Amazon, stop engaging right away and contact Amazon directly through the app or website. “Amazon will not ask you to download or install any software to connect with customer service nor will we request payment for any customer service support.”
- Keep informed. In the U.S., Amazon has partnered with the Better Business Bureau to provide consumers a searchable Scam Tracker that enables you to search suspicious communications reported by others by email, URL, phone number.
Amazon also said that if you ever receive a communication that you think might not be legitimate, then you should report it immediately using the self-service tool that enables you to do this in just a few quick steps or by sending an email to reportascam@amazon.com if you prefer.
