In a proactive move to protect its 300 million active users, Amazon has issued a warning about a spike in impersonation scams coinciding with the upcoming Black Friday and Cyber Monday events. This notice, sent on November 24, aims to raise awareness about the various fraudulent tactics that typically escalate during this peak shopping period, a time when cybercriminals are particularly active.

The warning, highlighted by Forbes, details how scammers are increasingly masquerading as Amazon representatives to trick consumers into divulging sensitive personal or financial information. These deceitful schemes often involve bogus alerts about delivery issues or account problems, misleading social media advertisements promising significant discounts, and unsolicited communications through unofficial channels that request payment or login credentials.

Amazon’s cautionary message serves as a timely reminder for shoppers to remain vigilant and discerning in their interactions, ensuring that they safeguard their information against these cleverly disguised threats during the bustling holiday season.

The company said common impersonation attempts include fake delivery-issue or account-problem notifications, misleading social media ads offering steep discounts, and unsolicited messages sent through unofficial channels requesting payment or login details. 

Customers should also be wary of unfamiliar links, alerts about purchases they don’t recall making and unexpected tech-support phone calls.

The warning comes as cybersecurity researchers report a wave of new scam infrastructure being deployed in advance of the holiday weekend. 

A FortiGuard Labs analysis released Nov. 25 found more than 18,000 holiday-themed domains were registered in the past three months using terms such as “Christmas,” “Black Friday” and “Flash Sale.” 

At least 750 of those were confirmed to be malicious, the firm said, calling the volume of suspicious domains a clear sign of coordinated pre-holiday cybercrime efforts.

Amazon, which remains the largest online retailer and a major target for scammers, said customers can reduce their risk by relying only on official Amazon channels for all account-related actions, including customer service, delivery tracking, refunds and account changes. The company also urged users to enable two-factor authentication or adopt passkeys to add an extra layer of security to their accounts.

The retailer emphasized that legitimate Amazon representatives will never ask for sensitive information through unsolicited messages or direct customers to third-party sites. Shoppers who receive suspicious communications are encouraged to report them through Amazon’s help center.