Nearly 1 in 3 Americans Hit by a Costly Holiday Scam, Norton Survey Shows — How To Avoid This
Written by
John Csiszar
Edited by
Rebekah Evans
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Although the holiday season is meant to be a time of joy and laughter with friends and family, it’s also a Christmastime all its own for thieves and scammers. The combination of a giving spirit and a desire for convenience unfortunately makes American consumers an easy target for online scammers. According to the 2025 Norton Cyber Safety Insights Report, 31% of U.S. adults said they have been targeted by a holiday shopping scam, with 51% of those admitting they fell victim. The report concluded that Americans who lean on shortcuts during the holiday buying season are setting themselves up to walk straight into scam traps.
Here’s a quick look at the data from the Norton report, along with some suggestions as to how you can help keep yourself safe.
Top Risk: Convenience
The speed and simplicity of online platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube are something of a double-edged sword. While they help cut through the clutter and chaos of the busy holiday season for many Americans, they also open the door to scammers. According to the Q4 2024 Threat Report issued by Gen Digital, the parent company of Norton, over 50% of all scams detected on social media come from fake online shops.
This risk is particularly acute among younger shoppers, who are more likely to shop using online sources. Among younger shoppers, the risk-taking goes higher. According to Norton, roughly 70% of millennials engage in risky online behavior to acquire high-demand gifts, such as clicking questionable social ads, buying from strangers on social media, clicking on unknown sellers or suspicious links or even purchasing counterfeit items.
With the proliferation of fake storefronts and ads on social media, it pays to take an extra moment or two to vet your purchases before you make them.
Secondary Risk: Urgency
Urgency is the other common impulse that makes shoppers more vulnerable to shopping scams. The hustle and bustle of the holiday season often pushes consumers into buying items without a second thought, something fraudsters are well aware of. The Norton study highlights two alarming trends in particular:
- 62% of Americans say they’re likely to buy something online as soon as they see a “deal,” often without verifying the seller is legitimate
- 54% say they’ve bought something online via an ad on social media, a 10% jump over the prior year
These statistics highlight both the pros and cons of online shopping. While it’s hard to argue that it’s not convenient, it’s also far too easy to make urgent or impulse purchases. Between the seductiveness of ads that make “buying now” seem necessary and the ability of scammers to exploit this, online shopping is ripe for fraud.
How You Can Protect Yourself
While the Norton report brings attention to the proliferation of holiday scams, the online security company also offers actionable advice so you can help protect yourself. Here are some of the steps Norton recommended:
- Take a moment before you buy. This advice made sense even before the advent of online shopping, but it’s even more relevant today. If you find a deal that seems too good to be true, take a breath and pause before you click “buy.” Ensure that you are truly getting a deal for the product you want and never feel pressured to buy something.
- Stick to brands you know. Never buy from social media sellers or brands you have never heard of unless you can 100% verify that a site or seller is legitimate. One way to protect yourself is to make sure that a site has the secure “HTTPS” letters in its link. Norton also recommended using its official app to add a layer of safety.
- Be careful using artificial intelligence (AI). Almost 40% of people in the Norton study indicated they plan to use tools like ChatGPT to help with gift ideas. But using AI doesn’t automatically insulate you from bad sellers. It can be duped by the same scammers that you can if you do a generic internet search. If you’re going to use AI, always verify the links it provides and never send payment information through the online tool.
- Track your packages and set alerts. From low-tech porch pirates to high-tech GPS trackers, even the delivery of a package is now a medium for scams. During the holiday season, many shoppers get overwhelmed and lose track of exactly what’s coming to them and when. To avoid problems, always monitor the delivery of your packages and know exactly what you ordered. This way you can know immediately if something may have been stolen. It will also help prevent you from clicking on a scam email telling you a package is coming that you never even ordered.
- Use security tools. Antivirus software, VPNs and scam-detection tools can help keep you scam-free. Norton’s own product line offers an entire suite of products that can block ads, fake websites and phishing attempts.
While you can leverage online shopping to save time — and perhaps even score a few deals — never let this convenience push you into risky online behavior. Remember, every time you buy something online, you’re providing someone else with access to your personal data and payment information — so guard those precious commodities carefully.
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