Summer Cyber Scams To Avoid

Summer is the season synonymous with travel. Bags will be packed, and countless people will travel all over the world to destinations both new and familiar. But before the actual traveling takes place, flights and lodging need to be booked. Many people will go online to get their itinerary in order.

Unfortunately, cybercriminals are well aware that a lot of people are willing to spend money and share information, and thus, have crafted cyber scams designed to trick people into turning over valuable assets.

This guide will highlight some of the cyber scams to keep an eye out for in the summer months.

Travel Scams Can Be Costly, and Can Affect Anyone

Cybercriminals pay attention to trends, and know that people are going to spend money to get their travel plans in order. They target travelers in a number of different ways and from several different angles.

Unfortunately, cybercriminals have had a fair amount of success with these scams, and the results can be costly for the victim. According to a 2024 study from McAfee, 28% of people lost at least $1,000 to a single travel related scam. And these scams capture people of all ages. Of the people that fell victim to booking-related travel scams, 40% were ages 18-29 and 13% were ages 50-65.

Now, let's look at some of these scams.

Fake Booking Sites and Apps

One of the more common travel scams deployed by cybercriminals is the creation of fake booking websites and applications. The websites and applications are designed to look similar to legitimate websites, complete with sections where they can book their travel.

Cybercriminals lure potential travelers to these sites and apps by offering phony deals that are often too good to be true. To get these so-called deals, you may need to make an upfront payment or hand over personal information, not knowing that you are actually turning these assets over to bad actors.

Phishing Messages

Cybercriminals will also use traditional phishing messages to try and trick unsuspecting targets. Examples of phishing messages include fake flight confirmation emails and heavily discounted deals on rentals.

These phishing messages could come via email, but they can also be sent in a text message, a tactic known as smishing. The phishing messages may include malicious links and attachments that may trigger a download of malicious malware. Or, they may send people to the phony booking websites we mentioned earlier.

Fake Rental Listings On Legitimate Websites

Another tactic used by cybercriminals is to post fake rental listings on legitimate websites. The pictures on the listing may be gathered from real estate websites to make the listing appear genuine.

Bad actors will post listings at a below-market rate to make them seem especially attractive to travelers. Cybercriminals will ask for either a deposit, or full payment up front, and when the traveler heads to their destination, they will find out the property isn’t available for rent, or doesn’t exist at all.

How Can I Protect Myself?

• Check the website URL to ensure it is spelled correctly and has the correct domain ending. Bad actors will create websites with URLs that are spelled similarly to that of a legitimate website, a practice known as typosquatting. If a person isn’t careful, they may not notice that the website URL isn’t spelled correctly, and would be at risk of losing valuable assets
• Only use websites that have HTTPS at the beginning of the URL, as they are protected by encryption
• For applications, conduct research on the app developer and read reviews. Other users may offer warnings about times they have been scammed using a particular application. In the case of both phony websites and applications, do a little reading and see if there are any misspelled words and poor grammar
• Read all emails you receive carefully, especially if they are offering you travel deals. Again, these messages may contain misspellings and poor grammar
• Never click on links or attachments from senders you don't recognize
• Be suspicious of any heavily discounted travel deals. If a deal is too good to be true, it probably is
• If you see a rental that has a price below-market rate, contact the property owner and look up the address across multiple websites. You should also avoid any listing that asks for a specific form of payment, including wire transfers and gift cards