The end of the year is a time for joy and happiness. Avoid these holiday scams that could ruin this time.

As the holiday season joyfully approaches, it’s important to be alert for potential pitfalls that could dampen the festive spirit. This time of year not only brings merriment but, unfortunately, it also attracts opportunistic holiday scammers looking to exploit the merriment.

Holiday scams can take various forms, from deceptive in-person tactics to online schemes, and it’s vital to arm yourself with knowledge to safeguard your festivities.

Join us as we discover these threats, providing you with insights on how to steer clear of these pitfalls and guarantee a season filled with joy and peace of mind.

Let’s make this holiday season not only festive but also scam-free. Stay informed vigilant, and let the festivities be truly worry-free. On that note, let’s delve into the world of holiday scams, shedding light on the 5 most common pitfalls to avoid.

Gift card fraud

If you’ve received a gift card you can’t use and don’t want to regift, you can find buyers online ready to buy it from you. But be careful about who you’re dealing with. Holiday scammers offering to purchase gift cards might ask you to do a three-way “balance check.”

This is when they listen on the phone while you confirm the balance with the card issuer. What they’re doing is capturing the sounds of your keystrokes to find out your login information. That way, they can use the card’s value without you knowing it.

Previously, gift card buyers had to to worry about criminals secretly uncovering activation codes from the card’s in-store display racks.

Scammers used to scrape off the code covering, jot down the code, cover it back up, and wait for a buyer to load on money before using the stolen activation code to access the funds.

This doesn’t happen as often anymore because gift cards are better protected. Improved packaging or an additional PIN needed for activation has helped solve this issue.

Avoid this holiday scam: Avoid posts on social media for gift card purchase requests or from individuals offering to pay 100% of your card’s value.

A legitimate buyer will pay you 80% of your card’s worth. Sellers are better off using gift card marketplaces like Raise.com and Cardpool.com, which have customer-service contacts and are tracked by the Better Business Bureau.

You may notice that you can’t access the stored value in your gift cards, mainly Visa cards from Walmart. The company purposely waits to let recipients use them until 24 hours after activation. It’s a security measure against money laundering.

You should check the card itself or the packaging, which should reveal when it will be active.

Shipping and delivery scams

Scammers count on the fact that many people get excited to receive a gift they weren’t expecting. And they take advantage of the increase in seasonal package deliveries to defraud consumers.

For instance, you may find an official-looking notice in your mailbox saying that a delivery attempt was made. You call the given number and are advised to provide personal information, like a Social Security number or a credit card, to get the package delivered.

A scammer can then use that information to set up credit accounts in your name and commit identity theft. Another scam involves an e-mail claiming a problem with a delivery. When you click the link, you’re directed to a fake site that asks you to confirm personal information.

The e-mails usually graphically imitate FedEx, UPS, or the US Postal Service, but they can also mimic a bank, retailer, or credit card company. Many are shopping more now. And thieves are opportunists, so that’s when they pounce.

Avoid this holiday scam: Before calling the mailbox notice’s phone number, check it for tracking numbers and web addresses. If the delivery is legit, you should be able to research it on the delivery service’s website.

If you receive an e-mail that there’s a problem with a delivery from someone, go to the website instead of clicking on a link and log on to your account if you have one.

A legitimate delivery person who comes to the door will never ask you to supply a credit card or pay a fee as identification to receive a parcel. And you only need to show ID for alcohol deliveries.

Stolen rewards points

You could find your points missing when you’re ready to spend your loyalty rewards at a retailer. That’s because there have been recent data breaches at major companies, including T-Mobile, Marriott, MyFitnessPal, Facebook, and Orbitz.

By now, most people have had some of their credentials compromised. You can be sure that at least your current email or one of your previous emails has been hacked. Bad actors count on many of us using the same email and password combinations for all sites.

Once they’ve stolen your log-in information from one website, they use software to plug it into hundreds of other sites, looking for matches.

Such “credential stuffing” provides them access to your accounts with retailers and banks, for instance. Then, they can use your rewards to buy things for themselves or even open new accounts in your name.

Avoid this holiday scam: Vary your passwords and change them frequently. Consider using a string of words rather than just one or two. A password like MyComputer is more accessible to hack than MyComput3rNow1sMyF@vorite!

Better still, you can use a password manager. It securely stores and encrypts all your passwords, and you can use it to generate long, strong, unique passwords designed to thwart hackers.

The software also remembers PINs, answers to security questions, and CVV codes, those three- and four-digit security codes on the back of your credit cards.

Holiday phishing

Be sure you pay close attention to the emails you receive from major businesses like Apple, UPS, FedEx, or Amazon. Don’t click on any attachments or links in your emails until you confirm that they’re not sent from a malicious source.

Holiday scammers, and not only, send these emails hoping that you’ll automatically click, oblivious to the fact that the contents are designed to rob you of important personal information.

Avoid this holiday scam: You can sniff out these types of holiday scam emails by watching for things like grammatical errors, typos, or addresses that don’t match the reputed site.

Continually have updated antivirus software running on your computer to avoid this scam.

Fake charities

During the holidays, many of us are in the giving spirit, and we open our wallets to charity. But be careful with that generosity.

Recently, a couple from New Jersey and a homeless “good samaritan” were charged with cheating donors out of over $400,000 when they set up a page on GoFundMe.

The couple asked for support for the man, described as a Marine veteran because he’d helped them out when they ran out of gas, a report that later proved to be fake.

A holiday scammer could put whatever information they wanted on a site like this and make you believe it’s legitimate.

Another dubious practice is mail and phone solicitations by charities that spend most of the money they raise on administration rather than actual services. They’re not considered outright scams, but they reserve very few resources for their mission.

Avoid this holiday scam: Don’t donate to crowdfunding websites launched by individuals you don’t know. Inspect how much a charity provides toward its “good works” on websites like Charity Navigator and CharityWatch.

And if you’re looking for a tax deduction, visit the charity’s website to confirm its tax-exempt status, or you can check with the IRS.

By being aware and following these tips on avoiding holiday scams, you can reduce the risk of falling prey to crooks. If you encounter any of them, review your financial statements, dispute unknown charges, and report any identity theft you find immediately.

We hope you found this post informative. But don’t leave just yet. The Money Place has much more to offer its readers. For instance, check out: Wondering If You’re Losing Money? You ARE by Throwing Away These 7 Things