Amazon sent customers an email with the subject line, “Lookout for online scammers” with detailed advice to help them prevent getting defrauded. One critical piece of advice – it advised recipients to be wary of false urgency. “Scammers may try to create a sense of urgency to persuade you to do what they’re asking,” the email stated. “Be wary any time someone tries to convince you that you must act now.”
Amazon can not have taken lightly the idea of issuing a warning to shoppers in the days leading up to Christmas, a possible sign of just how bad things are when it comes to fraud.
Some of the scams on the rise this year include false text messages and fake order confirmations, according to Abigail Bishop, Amazon’s head of scam prevention, in an article published on PYMNTS the same day as the Amazon mailing.
In Tuesday’s email to shoppers, Amazon explained “order confirmation scams,” writing: “These are unexpected calls/texts/emails that often refer to an unauthorized purchase and ask you to act urgently to confirm or cancel the purchase. These scammers try to convince you to provide payment or bank account information, install software to your computer/device, or purchase gift cards.”
Amazon also advised shoppers never to pay over the phone. “Amazon will never ask you to provide payment information, including gift cards (or “verification cards,” as some scammers call them) for products or services over the…
