Police remind online shoppers to be wary of scams

Online shoppers looking for savings over the festive period are being urged to stay alert to potential scams and secure their accounts ahead of the Black Friday sales.   

Some £11.8m was lost to online shopping fraud over last year’s festive shopping season (from 1 November 2024 to 31 January 2025), according to data from the City of London Police, the operational lead for tackling fraud nationally. 

Advice

The government's Stop! Think Fraud campaign provides trusted, practical guidance to help individuals and small businesses protect themselves from cyber criminals at a time when many people will be looking for deals online. 

Check the shop is legitimate:  check reviews on trusted websites before you buy.

Secure your important online accounts:  turn on 2-step verification (2SV) for all your important accounts to instantly toughen up your online security, even if your password has been compromised. It creates an extra layer of security making it harder for fraudsters to access your information.

Check out and pay securely:  check out ‘as a guest’ if you can, don’t allow the website to store your bank/card details. Never pay by direct bank transfer and use a credit card (if you have one). If you use payment services such as PayPal, Apple Pay or Google Pay, check what cover they provide.

Beware of delivery scams:  if you receive a message or a phone call about a delivery, stop and think if the request is genuine. Don’t click links in unexpected messages. Check a request is genuine by contacting the organisation directly using the contact details that you know to be correct. Be ultra cautious if you use the contact details that have been sent into you, in a text or email.  Ask yourself  “How do I know if these contact details are correct?” 

Reporting

If you think you have been a victim of cybercrime, please report the incident to Action Fraud via phone (0300 123 2040) or via their website at https://www.actionfraud.police.uk

If you think you have lost money or given out sensitive financial information to scammers, alert your bank / financial institution. Call them right away to inform them of the suspicious incident. You can quickly reach many UK banks' fraud departments by calling 159.

If you've received a suspicious email, please forward it to the NCSC's suspicious email reporting service (SERS) at  report@phishing.gov.uk .  Forward suspicious text messages onto 7726.

More information, including advice on how to protect yourself against phishing, can be found on the NCSC website.