Last Black Friday, I fell victim to a scam. It was the height of the Stanley cup craze, and I saw a great deal on (what looked like) a well known retailer’s website. The online page looked just like the original. The URL was exactly like the retailer’s real website link, it just ended in a .com and not a .co.za, so I didn’t notice. I figured out the scam pretty quickly after payment, and I was refunded by my bank who opened a fraud case (Needless to say, I didn’t get my Stanley cups). But I got lucky with my outcome, and learned a big lesson. Have you ever caught or been caught by a Black Friday scam? Share your stories so others don’t make the same mistake I did.
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Well done spotting it in time!
My antidote to the perils of Black Friday (day or week or month - as it has been amended) is to avoid it altogeher. There will be specials again, one ones that do not demand my action right here and right now. I despise the “consumer” label. It’s not who or what I am.
Again, super glad you dodged this one.
An aquaintance was R30K down before he realised what had been going on. He is older than me, and it hurts to see that hurt.
A previous employer lost R60K on a deal that looked just too good to pass up on. But there were warning signs…
I am paranoid of whatever I cannot immediately verify. My psychiatrist once had me block and report her when I received a Telegram message asking ‘Hello, is this is good time to talk?’ when she used an office cellphone!
TBH, I think I have been lucky. Odds are, my turn will come.
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You are so right @Hans_Rehder. A year later and I didn’t need a stanley cup any more than a normal water bottle, and it taught me to not only be extra cautious to avoid scams but also to be more intentional about my shopping to avoid falling for consumerism.
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I just discovered the best descriptor of the seasonal madness over at The Four-Day Spend-emic – Eighty20
Spendemic
It captures all of it.
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@Kara has some advice:
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