Hello, here's a quote explaining the what and why of the cybercrime spike, especially during the holiday season. Hope this helps: Every holiday season, the same three vulnerabilities surface, all of which often have less to do with technology and more to do with human behaviour. When shoppers rush through checkout on unfamiliar sites, they skip the basic verification steps that would instantly flag a spoofed domain or fake checkout flow. Cybercriminals design their campaigns around that urgency because, in both real attacks and pentests, speed is the easiest exploit. Password reuse is another silent vulnerability. From a security perspective, it creates a 'single point of failure.' Once one account is breached, credential-stuffing makes it trivial for attackers to pivot into others. It's a tactic we see attackers automate at scale. And public Wi-Fi remains a classic risk. Without encryption, you're essentially broadcasting your traffic to whoever is listening. Attackers don't need sophisticated malware, a simple man-in-the-middle setup can intercept data before you realise anything is off. These mistakes persist because they trade security for convenience. The tech underneath is complex, but the fix is simple: slow down, verify, and treat every login or network connection as a potential attack surface.
I've built 20+ e-commerce and SaaS websites over the past 5 years, and here's what I see people getting burned by during holiday shopping: **Using public WiFi without protection.** I worked on a fashion e-commerce site where we had to add extra security warnings because customers were completing checkout at coffee shops and airports. When you're on public networks, cybercriminals can intercept your data--I've seen clients lose thousands because they entered card details while connected to "Free_Airport_WiFi." If you must shop on public WiFi, at least use your phone's hotspot instead. **Clicking promotional links from unsolicited texts or emails.** During one Black Friday, a client's customers reported getting fake shipping notifications that looked identical to our design. The phishing links went to near-perfect replica sites we built. People entered their login credentials thinking they were tracking packages, but they were handing over account access. Always go directly to the retailer's website by typing the URL yourself rather than clicking links. **Not enabling two-factor authentication on shopping accounts.** When we migrated an e-commerce client to a new platform, we finded 80% of their customers had never set up 2FA despite having payment methods saved. One credential breach and criminals can place orders using stored cards before you even know your account was compromised.
I run a B2B e-commerce platform where we process thousands of corporate orders, and I see businesses fall into traps that expose both their company data and employee information. Here are two mistakes that get exploited during holiday corporate gifting season: **Using public WiFi to place bulk orders without a VPN.** Last December, one of our potential clients lost their entire employee database when their HR manager ordered 200+ gift packs from a coffee shop. The order included names, addresses, and company card details--all intercepted on unsecured network. Corporate holiday orders are goldmines for cybercriminals because they contain bulk employee data in one transaction. **Clicking "urgent delivery" email links without verifying the sender.** During our peak season, we noticed scammers send fake delivery update emails that look identical to legitimate carriers. One customer nearly gave away their HubSpot login credentials through a phishing link claiming their 500-item order was delayed. The email looked perfect--right logo, tracking number format, even the right courier company. They only caught it because our actual tracking showed the order was already delivered. The pressure to get gifts delivered before Christmas makes people rush through security checks they'd normally catch. I always tell our clients: if an email creates urgency around a large order, close it and manually steer to the courier's website yourself. That 30 seconds could save thousands.
I run operations for a wholesale plumbing supply company with over 150 locations, and we process thousands of contractor transactions daily. The biggest vulnerability I see during holiday shopping isn't online--it's people using public WiFi at coffee shops or hotel lobbies to make purchases without a VPN. We had a contractor nearly lose $12,000 because he ordered equipment from a supplier while sitting at a Starbucks during a lunch break. Criminals were on the same network harvesting unencrypted payment data. He only caught it because his bank flagged unusual activity in another state two hours later. The other major mistake is people clicking "urgent delivery problem" texts or emails during the holiday rush when they're expecting multiple packages. Last December, three of our office staff almost entered their credentials on fake UPS sites because they were genuinely waiting for shipments. When you're expecting five packages, you stop questioning that sixth notification. My rule: never make purchases on public WiFi, and always manually type in the carrier's website address instead of clicking links in shipping notifications. Takes an extra 15 seconds but saves you from becoming an easy target.
I run a recovery and wellness centre in Australia, and after nine years of sobriety, I've learned how addiction and impulsive behaviour create perfect conditions for exploitation--holiday shopping triggers the exact same patterns cybercriminals count on. The biggest vulnerability I see is emotional shopping during high-stress periods. When I was drinking, I'd make impulsive purchases late at night, barely remembering what I bought or where. Criminals exploit this during holidays when people are tired, overwhelmed, and making quick decisions without checking if a website is legitimate. That "amazing deal" at 11pm after three glasses of wine? That's when you're clicking links without verifying the URL or noticing the site has zero security indicators. Another mistake is using public WiFi while frantically shopping between errands. I've watched clients in our centre cafe pull up banking apps on our guest network without thinking twice. During holiday shopping rushes, people are entering card details at coffee shops, airports, and shopping centres on unsecured connections. Criminals sit on these same networks with basic software that captures everything you type. The shame factor makes it worse--just like people hide addiction struggles, they're embarrassed to admit they clicked a sketchy link or can't remember authorizing a charge. That delay in reporting gives criminals days or weeks to drain accounts before anyone notices.
After 40 years running my law firm and CPA practice in Jasper, Indiana, I've seen holiday shopping disasters create legal and financial nightmares for clients. The pattern I notice most: people mixing personal and business purchases on the same accounts during holiday chaos. Small business owners are the worst offenders--they'll use their business card for personal gifts to "get the points," then their bookkeeper can't reconcile December's books for months. When tax season hits, they're missing legitimate deductions because everything's tangled together. Cybercriminals love this confusion period because fraudulent charges get buried in the noise of 40+ holiday transactions, and business accounts often have higher limits with less monitoring than personal cards. The other massive vulnerability I see in my practice: people doing financial transactions on public WiFi at malls or coffee shops between shopping trips. I had a client last year who checked their business bank account at Starbucks during Black Friday weekend--within 48 hours, someone initiated three wire transfers that we had to fight for months to reverse. Public networks are essentially open doors, especially when people are tired and distracted from shopping. My CPA brain says this: treat December like an audit month. Separate every transaction type, check statements daily during sales periods, and never access financial accounts outside your home network during the shopping season. The 10 minutes you save could cost you 10 months of legal fees to fix.
I run an e-commerce furniture company and we've built our customer base largely around baby boomers and older generations. From watching how our customers shop, I can tell you the mistakes I see constantly. **The biggest one is shopping while distracted or rushed, especially on mobile devices.** When people are browsing during family gatherings or in between holiday tasks, they're not paying attention to what permissions they're granting or what information they're entering. We proactively call customers when we see incomplete checkouts because half the time they don't even remember starting an order--they got interrupted and left their session open or clicked through screens without reading. **Second is reusing the same password across multiple shopping sites during a buying spree.** I saw this when several of our customers got hit after a breach at another retailer. They'd used identical login credentials across 4-5 different furniture and home decor sites they were comparing. Once one site was compromised, criminals accessed their accounts everywhere--changing shipping addresses and placing fraudulent orders before anyone noticed. **Third is over-sharing personal information in customer service chats and emails.** Our reps have had people send photos of credit cards, Social Security numbers, and driver's licenses unprompted just to "verify" themselves faster. We never ask for that stuff, but when someone's excited about a purchase or frustrated about shipping, they drop their guard completely. That information in an email lives forever and passes through multiple servers.
I've spent 25+ years in digital marketing and served as an expert witness for the Maryland Attorney General on digital reputation and search results, so I've seen how criminals weaponize consumer behavior during high-stakes shopping seasons. The biggest mistake is reusing passwords across shopping sites. When one retailer gets breached--which happens constantly during Q4 when systems are overloaded--criminals immediately test those credentials on Amazon, PayPal, and major banks. I've consulted on cases where a single compromised password from a small boutique site led to drained accounts across five platforms. Use unique passwords for every checkout, or you're handing criminals a master key. Second is engaging with "deal verification" texts or emails. Scammers send fake shipping notifications or price-drop alerts that look identical to real retailer messages, but the links install malware or harvest your login when you "confirm your order." We've tracked these campaigns spiking 300%+ in November and December because people expect those messages. Never click links in unsolicited messages--open your browser and go directly to the retailer's site instead. Third is shopping on public WiFi without a VPN. Coffee shops and malls are goldmines for packet sniffing during the holidays. Criminals set up fake "Free Mall WiFi" networks that capture everything you type, including credit cards and passwords. I've interviewed CBS and NBC about privacy vulnerabilities like this--if you must shop in public, use your phone's cellular data or a proper VPN, not whatever network pops up first.
I've investigated thousands of cybercrime cases across law enforcement and corporate environments, including building Amazon's Loss Prevention program from scratch. Here's what I see cybercriminals exploiting during holiday shopping that most people miss: **Reusing passwords across retail accounts.** When I was investigating a major data breach, we found criminals weren't just stealing from the breached site--they were using those credentials to access 60+ other shopping platforms. One victim lost $8,000 because they used the same password for a small boutique site that got hacked and their Amazon account. Criminals run automated tools that test stolen credentials across every major retailer within hours of a breach. **Ignoring the urgency manipulation in "limited time" offers.** During investigations, I've analyzed the tactics criminals use in fake shopping sites, and they're psychological masters. They create countdown timers, "only 2 left in stock" warnings, and flash sale pressure specifically to make you abandon your normal security checks. When people feel rushed, they skip verifying the website URL, don't notice missing security certificates, and enter payment info into sites that were registered three days ago. I've seen victims wire money to "too good to be true" deals that disappeared the moment the transaction cleared. **Saving payment information on unfamiliar retailer websites.** In one case I worked, criminals compromised a seasonal pop-up shop's database and grabbed stored credit cards from 2,400 customers who thought they were saving time for future purchases. Those cards were sold on dark web markets within 48 hours. Only save payment info on major retailers with proven security track records--that random site with amazing deals probably doesn't have enterprise-level encryption protecting your data.
I've built hundreds of e-commerce sites for local businesses over 15 years, and every November/December I see the same exploits hit my clients hard. Here are two mistakes cybercriminals love: **Reusing the same password across multiple shopping sites during deal hunting.** When people are jumping between 10+ retailers chasing Black Friday deals, they default to one "shopping password" for convenience. I had a client whose customers got hit after a small boutique site got breached--criminals used those credentials to access their Amazon, Target, and bank accounts because everything matched. One compromised site becomes a master key. **Saving payment info on new/unfamiliar retailer sites to speed through checkout.** The holiday rush makes people store credit cards on sites they'll never use again just to beat a countdown timer on a deal. I watched a contractor client nearly lose $4,000 when a "too good to be true" tool supplier he'd never heard of got breached three weeks after he saved his card there for a one-time order. That site folded, but his card info lived on in criminal databases. The scarcity mindset during sales ("only 2 left!") overrides normal caution. I tell my clients' customers: if you wouldn't trust a site with your info in July, don't trust it in December just because there's a timer running.
Three Critical Holiday Shopping Mistakes That Invite Cybercriminals: 1. Using Public Wi-Fi for Financial Transactions Holiday shoppers often connect to coffee shop or mall Wi-Fi to compare prices and make purchases. This is digital gold for cybercriminals using packet sniffers to intercept unencrypted data. 2. Reusing Passwords Across Shopping Sites During the holiday rush, people create accounts on multiple new retail sites using the same password. When one smaller retailer experiences a breach (which happens frequently), cybercriminals use those credentials to access accounts across dozens of platforms. The cascading effect means one weak link compromises your entire digital identity. 3. Ignoring Software Updates During Shopping Marathons Shoppers postpone critical security updates because they don't want to interrupt their deal-hunting. Those delayed updates often contain patches for known vulnerabilities that cybercriminals actively exploit during high-traffic shopping periods. The fundamental issue: these mistakes create permanent vulnerabilities. Once sensitive payment information or personal data is stolen, there's no technological "undo button"—making prevention the only viable strategy.
I continue to see increased phishing attempts during the holidays, and the biggest mistakes are clicking deal links from emails or texts, entering credentials on lookalike checkout pages, and reacting to fake delivery or order problem notices. Criminals use urgency and brand spoofing to pull shoppers off trusted sites, then capture logins and payment details for account takeovers and fraudulent charges.
Two mistakes I see frequently are password reuse and not enabling multi-factor authentication when possible. Password reuse across multiple accounts means that a breach on any of the sites can quickly lead to breaches in all sites where you used that password in what is called a credential stuffing attack. Many existing password managers allow for both unique and difficult to crack passwords, and employing one can quickly make it exponentially harder for hackers to figure out your passwords. However, avoiding password reuse is not foolproof. Multi-factor authentication can also make it much more difficult to break into accounts. Hackers would have to gain access to things like hardware keys and text message codes, which is much harder than just guessing passwords. While it is not impossible to bypass, most hackers won't spend the time on your particular account and will then target accounts that are not as well protected.
Here's the thing about shopping on public Wi-Fi at airports or malls - it's a bad idea. Hackers can easily see what you're typing, including your credit card info. People also reuse the same password everywhere, which is a huge mistake. I've dealt with this stuff for years. Just use your phone data for purchases and get a password manager to create a different login for each site. It's the simplest way to stay safe.
That holiday deal email from a store you don't recognize? Don't click it. It's usually a fake site just looking to steal your card information. I also see people using one password for every store account, so when one gets hacked, they all get broken into. Working with thousands of shoppers at CashbackHQ, I've learned this much: use different passwords and always check the web address before you type anything.
From my work with cloud platforms, I've noticed most people don't check if a checkout is secure. They'll type their card number into a site without the HTTPS lock symbol. People also save their card details on random websites to make checkout faster next time. If that site gets hacked, your information is exposed. I stick to well-known sites and never save my payment info anywhere I don't completely trust.
I keep seeing the same mistakes when we review incidents. People tap on holiday deal links in emails or social ads without checking the address bar. They pay with debit cards on sketchy sites, so a hit drains the bank account. Many still skip multi factor on retailer and email accounts, which turns one stolen password into full account access. We work with a managed IT company and the in person side is just as messy. Shoppers hop on open mall wifi, then log in to banking or inboxes. Others grab exposed gift cards that crooks already copied. All of this runs on rush and decision fatigue. Recent 2025 work on e commerce attacks shows holiday periods bring a clear jump in both volume and damage: https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.03020
During holiday season, people sign up for newsletters, loyalty programs, coupon sites, sweepstakes, and last-minute deals. Many use the same email tied to their bank or PayPal. This blends their "shopping identity" with their "financial identity," which gives scammers a larger entry point. If that email makes it into a spam list, the phishing attempts suddenly become way more convincing because they already match the user's real habits.
During holiday chaos, shoppers often focus only on big discounts. Scammers exploit this at pop-up markets or temporary stalls by placing micro-priced items with slightly inflated tags. Those tiny mismatches seem harmless, so customers don't question unfamiliar payment terminals or QR codes. The real trap is the payment method. Some malicious terminals skim card data quietly, and people don't notice until weeks later because the purchase felt "too small to worry about."
One of the biggest mistakes is trusting every link that shows up in an inbox or social feed. The pressure to find a deal leads people to click before they think, and attackers count on that impulse. I spend my days working with companies on partnerships and tech strategy, and I see how quickly bad actors spin up convincing pages that capture personal information within seconds. Another mistake is using public Wi-Fi to shop. It's convenient for running errands, yet it exposes unencrypted sessions that attackers can intercept with little friction. I work in markets where data moves fast, and the stakes are high, and unsecured networks remain one of the easiest entry points for anyone looking to exploit shoppers. A third mistake is ignoring basic account hygiene. People reuse passwords or skip multi-factor authentication because they want a smooth checkout process. Criminals take advantage of that predictability. I spend a lot of time working with technologies that support sustainability and recycling systems, and those industries rely on robust digital infrastructure. Consumers need the same mindset during the holidays.