E-COMMERCE SCAMS

Warning that Black Friday and Cyber Monday also attract the scammers

By our News Team | 2021

Rise in online shopping equates to more dubious e-commerce sites that damage consumer confidence and result in lost revenue for businesses.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales are becoming increasingly important to African retailers and are, in many instances, the kick-off to the traditional holiday shopping season.

But as online shopping becomes a bigger part of the African retail equation, so too do e-commerce scams that both damage consumer confidence and result in lost revenue for legitimate businesses.

In the lead-up to this all-important long weekend of shopping, threat-intelligence platform FortiGuard Labs has observed an increased number of scams involving counterfeit websites that appear to be legitimate e-commerce sites. FortiGuard is part of Fortinet, a prominent cybersecurity company.

Image by LillyCantabile from Pixabay

It warns that fake e-commerce sites are quickly becoming the latest threat to consumers and cover a wide range of products to lure potential buyers.

“We recently came across a live, active scam that leverages the look and feel of the world’s largest companies and their respective trademarks to compel and lure victims into making purchases from their site,” FortiGuard Labs notes in a blog post.

Dubious sites use the same template

“These sites are in no way affiliated with the trademark/IP owner, and are recognisable in part because they use the same template over and over in a digital game of ‘whack-a-mole’ (meaning that as soon as one site gets shut down, another one immediately pops up somewhere else).”

Among the prominent real-life brands that appear on these scam sites (obviously without their knowledge) are power tool giants Ryobi and Makita, coffee companies Nespresso and Keurig, and camping equipment company Coleman.

FortiGuard Labs says the scam e-commerce websites it has observed have the following characteristics in common:

The domain names have only been registered for a few days to a few months.
All sites are registered with the same registrar.
They use ‘.top’ and ‘.shop’ top-level domains (although ‘.com’ is also common).
They use stolen imagery.
They contain numerous grammatical errors and inconsistencies in statements.
Social Media buttons do not resolve anywhere, or go to accounts that either do not exist or have been deleted.
Their web-hosting providers utilise content delivery networks (CDN) to remain anonymous via an IP address that cannot be traced.

According to the website Ecommerce News, quoting international statistics, retail stores now see 30% of all sales occurring from Black Friday through until Christmas. “This marks the actual Black Friday as the day that kicks off the busiest shopping season,” it says.

We know AI influencers aren’t real – so why do we trust them?

Researchers describe AI influencers as having a ‘dual identity’. Consumers evaluate both ‘person’ and ‘technology’ identities at once.

Hotel receptionist assisting a guest at the check in counter with a gray suitcase nearby behind the desk

Why trust has become a critical asset for hotel industry marketers

Reputation and trust, once modest influences on hotel choice, have become some of the strongest predictors of patronage, study finds.

Three people in formal attire pose for a photo at an awards event a woman in a pink dress holds a trophy while two men in suits stand beside her against a gold confetti backdrop

FNB bank’s eBucks programme dominates the 2026 SA loyalty awards

South African brands are increasingly setting the global benchmark for customer loyalty strategies, organisers say.

Portrait of a man with short black hair and a beard wearing a black button down shirt against a light gray background

Zambia’s strongest creative ideas are emerging from local truths

Global influences among younger consumers are still present, but they are being filtered through a distinctly Zambian lens.

Yellow humanoid robot at a bakery counter inspecting a display of donuts on display in front of glass cases

Consumers have doubts about products when they’re designed by AI

Researchers find that lack of perceived ‘genuine care’ is the mechanism connecting AI involvement to lower trust ratings.

Top african marketing voices confirmed for amc

Top African marketing voices confirmed for AMC 2026

Explore the 2026 AMC Conference speaker line-up. Top African marketing voices gather in Zambia to tackle AI, AfCFTA, and brand power. Register today.

Person holding two smartphones with app icons visible on their screens a large tv screen in the background shows colorful app icons

Broadcast Research Council confirms launch of total video measurement

New industry currency will bring South African television and online video audiences together in a single measurement system.

Dj performing on a brightly lit stage as colorful lights shine over a dancing crowd

Sense of belonging and atmosphere are key to attracting event-goers

Making people feel that an event space reflects their values leads to long-term loyalty and spending. FOMO also plays its part.

Smiling woman with curly hair in a yellow and white striped shirt holds a red can and points to the text 'what makes some ai ads creepy '

Researchers examine why some AI ads fail while others succeed

Norms may change, but right now it’s better to err on the side of caution when using AI in advertisements, study finds.

Woman in a denim jacket looks at her phone while standing with a shopping cart in a grocery store aisle holding a boxed item

Study examines drivers of FMCG purchases in three African markets

GeoPoll insights report from Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa finds that quality remains the key purchase driver in FMCG.

E-commerce retailer aims to speak to the hearts of South Africans

As the country celebrates Heritage Month, Takealot embarks on a campaign to speak to consumers in all 12 official languages.