Black Friday Scams Are Surging: Protect Your Team and Business
Black Friday has become the biggest shopping event of the Australian year, and scam activity climbs right alongside it. The warnings this week were not aimed only at shoppers. Your business is in the firing line too.
As the sales kicked off, regulators and banks sounded the alarm in the same week. The Australian Banking Association warned that Australians reported losing more than 22 million dollars to buying and selling scams over the past year, with criminals now using AI to build fake online stores that mirror real brands. The ABC reported the ACCC has expanded its annual sweep of Black Friday advertising, and that six retailers have been fined a combined 217,800 dollars over the past two years for misleading sales claims, with fake shop fronts copying real retailers a growing problem.
It Is Not Just Your Customers at Risk
Here is the part the headlines miss. These scams do not stop at your customers. Your staff shop during the same window, often on work laptops and work email, and the same fake delivery texts and cloned stores land in work inboxes. Across the Australian businesses we support, we see a reliable spike from November through January in two things: people clicking fake parcel tracking links on work devices, and fake supplier invoices aimed at finance teams who are flat out before the break. One distracted click is all it takes.
What to Do Before the Rush
- Brief the team now. A quick reminder that scam texts and fake stores peak over the sales period, and that personal shopping is safest on personal devices.
- Treat every missed delivery text as suspect. Do not tap the link. Check the order on the retailer or courier site directly, using an address you type yourself.
- Verify any change to supplier bank details by phone using a number you already hold, before you pay a cent.
- Turn on multi factor authentication for email and finance apps, and keep work devices patched.
- Report scams to Scamwatch and tell your bank straight away if money has moved. The sooner they know, the better the chance of stopping it.
ABC News, Pre-Christmas shoppers warned of dodgy discounts as Black Friday sales kick off (10 November 2026)
ACCC, Warning against misleading storewide or limited time Black Friday sales claims
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do Black Friday scams affect my business and not just my customers?
Your staff shop during the same window, often on work devices and work email. Criminals send fake delivery texts, cloned retailer sites and dodgy order confirmations that land in work inboxes, and one click can expose a work login or device. The busy end of year is also prime time for fake supplier invoices aimed at your finance team.
What is the biggest scam risk for a business at this time of year?
Payment redirection. A scammer poses as a supplier or sends a fake invoice and asks you to pay a new bank account, or to change existing account details. With accounts teams rushing before the holidays, these slip through. Always confirm any change to bank details by phone using a number you already hold, not one from the email.
How do we spot a fake parcel delivery message?
Real couriers do not ask for card details or account logins by text. Treat any missed delivery message that wants a payment or personal information as a scam, do not tap the link, and check the order directly on the retailer or courier website using an address you type yourself.
Should we stop staff shopping on work devices?
You do not need a total ban, but a few rules help. Keep work devices patched, turn on multi factor authentication for email and key apps, and remind the team that personal shopping is safest on personal devices. A short seasonal reminder is usually enough to cut the risk.
Want your team ready before the sales rush?
We will train your staff, tighten your email filtering and lock down the accounts scammers go after.