The Better Business Bureau is urging people to take extra precautions as holiday shopping picks up, saying online scams increase significantly when consumers feel rushed or overwhelmed by deals.
Julia Lewis, President and CEO of BBB Serving the Atlantic Provinces, says the combination of early sales, heavy advertising and tighter budgets creates the conditions scammers look for, especially through steep-discount ads on social media that redirect shoppers to fake or insecure websites.
She says the pressure intensifies around Black Friday, when legitimate deals make fraudulent offers harder to spot.
“You see a major discount and think it must be legitimate because it’s Black Friday — but that’s not always the case,” she said.
Lewis says the biggest concern this season is steeply discounted items appearing in social media feeds — often for electronics, toys, and other high-demand products. These ads frequently redirect shoppers to fake or insecure websites.
People who buy through these ads often report either receiving nothing at all or receiving cheap, low-quality versions of what they thought they purchased. Returning those items is often impossible.
Lewis advises consumers to avoid purchasing directly through social media ads entirely.
Instead, she recommends leaving the platform, searching for the retailer independently, and confirming the website is legitimate before entering payment information.
Using credit cards offers more protection if something goes wrong, and Lewis encourages anyone who suspects they’ve been targeted to report it through the BBB Scam Tracker and contact their bank or card provider.
Lewis says the most effective defence is simply slowing down—planning ahead, verifying sellers, and resisting impulse clicks that can lead to losing money or personal information.
