Holiday scam robocalls and robotexts are surging nationwide, with scammers posing as charities, delivery services, and trusted organizations to take advantage of peak shopping stress.
Fraudsters are using more sophisticated, multi-channel tactics, combining phone calls, texts, and urgent messages to pressure consumers into sharing personal or financial information.
Experts warn scam tactics will keep evolving through the holidays, shifting from charity appeals now to loan, return, gift card, and tax scams in the weeks ahead.
If your phone has been ringing more than usual this holiday season, you’re not imagining it — and there’s a good chance at least some of those calls aren’t legitimate.
As Americans rush to order gifts, track packages, and manage tight budgets, scammers are doing what they do best: taking advantage of the chaos. As holiday scam robocalls and robotexts surge nationwide, fraudsters are using increasingly convincing tactics to steal money and personal information.
ConsumerAffairs spoke with John Haraburda, Director of Product Management at Transaction Network Services (TNS) to learn about the most common robocall scams making the rounds now and how to avoid them and protect yourself during the busiest shopping season of the year.
Common scams
Haraburda shared two of the most common scams circulating this holiday season that consumers should be looking out for:
Charity scams: These scams have increased dramatically in the past month, as bad actors seek to exploit the giving nature of the holiday season. Bad actors create organizations that operate under names that sound legitimate and claim to be raising much-needed funds. If you are looking into donating money to a charity, make sure to double check the legitimacy of the organization and how they solicit donations. Many legitimate organizations will not do this over the phone or make robocalls, and indicate that on their website.
Multimodal scams: Bad actors also seem to be increasing the frequency of multi-modal scams, where text and voice calls – as well as other integrated tactics – are used in order to create a greater sense of urgency and legitimacy of the attacks.
How to protect yourself
With AI making scams easier than ever, it’s important for consumers to know how to spot them and how to protect themselves and their personal data.
Haraburda broke down four best practices for consumers to protect themselves from falling victim to these scams:
Never share personal or financial details through unverified links: These scam attacks often prompt users to donate, directing them to malicious websites that request bank account details, credit card numbers, or other sensitive personal information. Don’t click on links from any unknown senders.
Verify with official sources: Before clicking on suspicious links, confirm the legitimacy of any charitable cause through official websites or verified phone numbers. Always double check with legitimate sources before donating.
Look for red flags: Even convincing robocalls and robotexts may contain small errors — such as misspelled names, incorrect organization titles, or unofficial web addresses.
Report and block: Block any number that sends a suspicious call or text, and report the scam to the FTC or your State Attorney General.
What to look for in the coming weeks
As we creep closer to the holidays, the scam tactics are likely to change. Haraburda gave some insight into how these efforts are evolving over the next few weeks.
“We anticipate a shift from charity collections scams to hardship or loan solutions as we get closer to Christmas as consumers try to prepare for the holiday,” he said. “After the holidays, we typically see return scams elevate as gifts are returned and gift card scams as well.
“Then, by the middle of January we move right into tax scams becoming the dominant attack once again.”