Tips for avoiding phone and online scams this holiday season

Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and other winter holidays are a time for family, friends and festivities, but they also mark a season in which phone and online scams can proliferate.

A cybersecurity firm recently found that Iowans are the country's fourth-most frequent targets of cybercrime per-capita. And at Christmastime, people tend to let their guard down more than any other time of the year, law enforcement officials say.

"During the year-end holidays, people are often busy, excited and sometimes a little bit careless," Lt. Leanna Ellis of the Story County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.

More:How to navigate holiday finances to start 2022 off right

Here are some tips to help you avoid phone and online scams this winter season.

Common phone scams

Old-fashioned phone scams are alive and well in the digital age. Fraudsters can even use high-tech tools to "spoof" caller ID to make it look like their call comes from a legitimate number.

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Be wary when:

• Someone calls to say thank you for a charitable pledge you didn't make, then  pressure you to send money right away. Never give money on this kind of call. 
• Someone calls from a company or charity you do business with, then asks personal information over the phone. Say you'll call them back, hang up, and look up the legitimate phone number yourself. They may also make contact by email or text first. Follow the same procedures.
• Someone you're speaking to asks you to pay with something other than a credit card. Credit cards have fraud protections, while other kinds of payment, like a money transfer, do not.

Common online shopping scams

According to the FBI, the most common scams against Iowans involve online shopping. 

More:How can you protect yourself from cybercrime?

Officials from the Iowa Attorney General's Office called that kind of fraud a particular risk for shoppers in a year beset by supply chain problems.

Be wary when:

• Someone asks you to pay through a site that's different than where you're purchasing. You're not getting a good deal — you're probably being scammed.
• You're on a site that doesn't have https at the beginning of its web address. Your information may be exposed unencrypted on the internet. Look for a padlock icon next to the web address; legitimate merchants should have that symbol. 
• An item for sale on a marketplace like eBay doesn't include photos of the item in its current condition. Having one isn't a guarantee, but a lack of one is suspicious.
• A web address appears to be misspelled or logos appear to be misused. Scammers often set up fake sites at web addresses similar to those of legitimate sites.
• A site asks for more information than it needs. Most sites don’t need your age or access to your contacts. No shopping site needs your banking details or your Social Security number. 

Tips for avoiding fraud online

• Type in a site's address yourself so you know where you're headed.
• Search for the name of unfamiliar sites alongside "scam," "complaints" or "fraud" and see if anything raises a red flag. 
• Don't shop while connected to a public WiFi network.
• Use credit cards for payment. Wire transfers, electronic checks and even debit cards all lack the legal and fraud protections provided by credit cards.

Sources: Iowa Attorney General's Office, FBI Internet Crimes Complaint Center, Story County Sheriff's Office, Crowdstrike, U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the Anti-Phishing Working Group.

Daniel Lathrop is a staff writer who grew up celebrating Hanukkah and Christmas. He loves any winter holiday that involves food. Reach him at (319) 244-8873 or dlathrop@gannett.com. Follow him at @lathropd on Twitter and at facebook.com/IowaGadfly.