Younger age groups report falling for online ID theft, fraud scams

The holidays are primetime for scammers, and two of the most recent attacks are impersonating banks.

Trend Micro Research says they’ve detected a wave of fake emails impersonating American Express, telling people they need to click on a link to verify their account.

The other scam email looks like a transaction notification from Navy Federal Credit Union, but don’t click on the link. It leads to a copycat version of the bank's website that will steal your login credentials.

According to the Consumer Report Sentinel Network, cyber attacks can increase to 70% in November and December.

Grant Gibson, Executive VP of CIBR Ready, says this is when you’ve got to be on your toes online.

"This is a time when people are offering you a free iPad. There is no free iPad on the internet, guys," Gibson told 5 On Your Side.

"To all those people out there that are thinking, ‘I hear this every year,’ don’t do it.” He warned. “This is the year to pay attention,"

Consumer Sentinel Network said a combined 3.5 million fraud and identity theft cases in 2022 drained $2.7 billion from victim’s bank accounts.

"The stats are just out of control," said Russ Munisteri with My Computer Career.

Both Gibson and Munisteri fully expect those numbers to be even higher when we look back at 2023.

There will be some scams that are more obvious and easy to spot.

"If someone’s trying to get you in an email, to believe that there is a last-minute deal to get this thing for 90% off, it’s not real," Gibson said.

However, the rise of Artificial Intelligence will make identifying things, like email scams, harder.

"A lot more people are going to be fooled out there," Munisteri said.

Consumer Sentinel Network said younger age groups. According to their data, 30-39-year-olds had the highest rate of identity theft in 2022, and 20-29-year-olds reported losing money to fraud more often than other groups.

"Are they reporting it more? Is it that they’re using more technology? Is it that they’re more numb to the threats? Or is it a combination of all those things mixed together?" Gibson wondered when 5 On Your Side asked about the reason behind the numbers.

"They just click click, click, click, click. And that’s it. And they are distracted with a lot of things," Munisteri added.

It’s important to note that there are good deals online. But we know who has the good deals and reputable websites.

Go with who you know and trust, even if it costs you a couple extra bucks.