7 fraudulent schemes you risk facing during the New Year holidays

1. Fake service of Santa Claus

Often, parents want to arrange a holiday for the children and order a visit from Father Frost and the Snow Maiden. This is a fairly common practice, and many are quite happy with it. But there is also a risk of becoming a victim of a scammer. Moreover, two schemes are possible at once:

1. Parents catch up at the last moment and start looking for where to turn. They call on an ad, write to instant messengers or fill out a form on the site. At the other end of the line, they ask for an advance payment, and a considerable one - suddenly the client changes his mind, and because of this they will refuse someone else. As a result, money goes nowhere, and Santa Claus does not appear.
2. The costumed animators still pay a visit. But if there are few people in the apartment, then one of them can amuse the children, and the second can walk around the apartment in search of what is bad. Because of the beard and make-up, the victim will still not be able to identify anyone later. At risk are customers who place an order on weekdays. Chances are there will only be one adult at home who will focus on the child.
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What to do

Check who you are dealing with. Often, animators are part of an event agency. If it's not a one-day event, it has a good website with photos of the holidays, names and photos of the actors. That is, you know exactly who will come to you in suits.

If you are dealing with professional Santa Claus and Snegurochka (or another companion), which work on their own, they usually have quite popular pages on social networks. There you can also learn about the actors, read reviews, and so on.

But recommendations from other parents when they forward links and contacts should be trusted with caution. Check where they got them from. If they have been inviting Santa Claus from this site for five years and everything is fine, this is a rewarding experience. If they are simply distributing the link that has been shared with them, this is an excuse to check the company or animator before paying for their services.

2. Fake holiday deals and clones of sites

Scammers practice this scheme all year round, but in the busy New Year's Eve it can be especially effective. People think about gifts, receive bonuses and are looking for something to please themselves, and in general they are ready to spend.

Scammers use this by sending letters and messages, posting links to incredibly profitable promotions and offers in social networks and in contextual advertising. At the same time, they lead either to an unfamiliar online store, or to a clone site of a well-known company. In the confusion, a potential victim may neglect security measures and pay for the purchase. The money will be debited (lucky if once), but the person will not see the goods.

What to do

You can't tell it in a nutshell. But Lifehacker has a detailed material on how to avoid becoming a victim of online shopping scams. Read it if you buy online.

3. Sale of fakes

The reckoning here is again made for turmoil. People on the eve of the holiday make a lot of purchases and often lose their guard. And they can fall for the bait of unscrupulous sellers who slip fakes. Of course, here the questions are no longer for official stores, but for various marketplaces, shopping on Instagram etc.

What to do

Buy branded products from authorized retailers. Be wary if you see too low prices in an incomprehensible online store. Chances are good that they are selling fakes. If the item is subject labeling, check it with the Honest Sign app.

4. Greeting Cards

Flickering postcards from older relatives in the mail and messengers have long become a meme. But there are a lot of congratulations on the holidays, from friends, organizations, and scammers. The latter can, along with good wishes, send harmful links that disguise as a lucrative offer or simply indicate that some interesting information is available on it.

Clicking on such links may result in the loss of personal data. As a result, criminals can hack social networks and rob the victim's friends, asking for a loan on her behalf, or blackmailing something, or gaining access to bank accounts.

What to do

Do not follow incomprehensible links.

5. Charity fees

Before the holidays, people become sentimental. I would like to give a New Year's miracle not only to myself, but also to others. If at such moments you come across information about collecting money for a sick child, or a homeless pensioner, or a freezing puppy, the hands themselves make the translation. But there is a great risk that the money will go to scammers.

What to do

For starters, don't serve to those asking for money on the street. Begging is a criminal business involving kidnapping and the slave trade. Those who collect change in boxes, ostensibly on behalf of a foundation, are also usually scammers. In Russia, it is too difficult to legally collect money on the street, so usually special organizations do not do this.

If you see a touching story on the Internet, do not be lazy to check is she true. It happens, however, that yes. Fraudsters steal circumstances, but indicate their details. In general, to help, you need to conduct a mini-investigation - and before you repost, too.

In general, it is better to pay attention to funds with a good reputation, which report on their activities.

6. Fake tickets

For the long New Year's holidays, you need to come up with leisure activities. Scammers use this to create fake event ticket sites. The victim enters the card details, and they fall into the hands of the attackers.

What to do

Buy on trusted sites. For example, if you take tickets for a Christmas tree in some House of Culture or officers, look for them on the website of this institution or popular aggregators.

7. Gifts from the Ministry of Health and other authorities

Pensioners are especially often the victims of fraudsters operating under this scheme. Before the holidays, "volunteers" from the Pension Fund, the Ministry of Health, some other organization come to them and talk about gifts. For example, they offer a device that cures all diseases with discounts in honor of the New Year, diagnostics of windows - with the subsequent elimination of the found damage for money, or something similar.

At best, the perpetrators cheat the victim, take the cash and leave. At worst, they expect that a person will go for savings and show them where they are stored. And then the attacker can attack and rob.

What to do

A rule that applies not only to children: do not open the door to strangers. They will not bring gifts, but problems are easy. Even if they are not scammers, why would you waste time watching a presentation of a set of pots.