Security researchers have observed a recent spike in phishing attempts and malicious website creation that aims to defraud Amazon customers. Amazon Prime Day will occur over two days this year, the 13 and 14 of October, however, the recently increased threat to Amazon customers may turn the event into a field day for hackers. Since August, there has allegedly been a dramatic increase in the number of new phishing and fraudulent sites created using the Amazon brand, the most significant increase since the COVID-19 pandemic pushed Americans to shop online more frequently to avoid leaving residences.
Last year, Amazon brought in over $7 billion in sales during the 36-hour event and is expected to profit even more this year due to the decline of brick and mortar retail and the proximity to the holidays. Amazon Prime Day offers shoppers special sales and discounts on popular products, marking the biggest shopping event of the year for the online retailer. Researchers sifted through hundreds of millions of web pages in order to detect malicious sites using Amazon’s brand and logos. Researchers concluded that threat actors and actively taking advantage of Amazon features and consumer behaviors in an attempt to steal credentials and financial information.
Read More: Amazon Prime Day Spurs Spike in Phishing, Fraud Attacks