The survey also found consumers, though increasingly informed, not fully understanding the seriousness of the threat landscape, as demonstrated by findings including:

Ninety percent of respondents said they are aware cybercriminals spoof retailer websites and email domains.
Still, 54% stated that they have fallen victim to scams.
Despite awareness, respondents were split in response to the statement, "I don't really think about breaches when I shop online," with 49% agreeing and 51% disagreeing with it.
Among respondents that had a previous encounter with a scam, 90% have changed their behavior, which is a 3% improvement from last year's survey findings.
Respondents are now taking certain precautions, which included paying closer attention to URLs and email senders to ensure emails are coming from the actual retailer (61%), checking the email domain to make sure it matches the brand they shop (78%), and directly visiting the retailer's site vs. clicking through from emails or on social media (54%).

DomainTools Tips:

Be confident. If you aren't 100% sure a link to your favorite retailer came from them, then don't click. Instead, navigate directly to a company's website rather than clicking on links sent via email or social media.
Be cool and collected. On Cyber Monday especially, phishers rely on high-pressure tactics ("shop now!" or "sale ends soon!") to lure shoppers in.
Be critical. Watch out for typos and look alike characters, and exercise caution about any links that come via email, SMS, or ads. Assume links are dangerous until decided otherwise.
Be paranoid. If a deal seems too good to be true, it usually is.

DomainTools offers several protection tools including PhishEye Monitor the Internet that enables organizations to identify existing and new domains that spoof legitimate brand and organization names; and Iris Investigation Platform Map, a proprietary threat intelligence and investigation platform.

Instant Insights /

Consumers: Less Trusting, Willing to Overlook Security Flaws for Cyber Monday

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