43 percent of Kiwis are concerned scammers will ruin holiday travel or accommodation arrangements
61 percent of respondents are worried older loved ones will fall for sales scams delivered via suspicious email or text
AUCKLAND, New Zealand, 3 November 2023 – The increasing popularity of generative AI (genAI) tools has unlocked new fears for Kiwis, according to a global study by Norton, a leading Cyber Safety brand from Gen.
Over half (54 percent) of New Zealanders surveyed said they are concerned about artificial intelligence (AI) shopping scams this holiday season and 64 percent of respondents believe there are more scams around the holiday season than any other time of the year. Furthermore, 61 percent of Kiwis are worried that older loved ones will fall for bogus sales offers. 44 percent are concerned about falling for a sophisticated shopping scam themselves.
These findings are revealed against the backdrop of the latest loss figures. The average amount lost by New Zealanders through holiday scams stands at NZD700.72, with the highest reported loss being NZD20,000.
Of the 27 percent of Kiwi respondents who reported being targeted by a scam during a previous holiday season, 37 percent fell victim—accounting for 10 percent of all respondents. Of these, 50 percent were scammed on a social media platform, 40 percent on a third-party website, 24 percent by text/SMS, 24 percent over the phone, and 20 percent by email.
The most common scams experienced by Kiwis were online shopping scams (56 percent), followed by charity scams (30 percent), and postal delivery scams (21 percent).
“The popularity of genAI took off globally this year, and along with that, the sophistication of online scams increased. Kiwis should be vigilant and consider using smart tools to help protect themselves and loved ones against scams,” says Mark Gorrie, Managing Director Norton APAC.
“On the other side of the coin, AI can be used for good, to bolster cybersecurity defences. Norton launched Genie this year – a free, easy-to-use, trusted AI-powered advisor that helps people stay ahead of highly convincing scams. Genie gives guidance on whether a message, email, link, or post is potentially a scam and suggests what to do next. Its AI algorithms are trained on millions of scam messages and red flags,” adds Gorrie.
The survey also revealed that in order to obtain gifts this holiday season, Kiwi online shoppers are willing to invest extra time and resources, and take actions that could potentially put their security at risk:
31 percent said they would spend 3 hours or more hunting down a gift online
15 percent said they would meet up with a stranger to retrieve a gift organised online
12 percent said they would spend $50 more than the gift’s market value
10 percent said they would share their personal information to get the right gift
9 percent said they would click on a social media ad or email claiming to have the gift.
Alarmingly, a small number still said they would even consider purchasing from a questionable website (5 percent) or buy from a questionable third-party seller (5 percent), and 2 percent said they would be willing to try to find a high-demand gift on the dark web.
“While it is tempting to go above and beyond to secure an attractive gift, Kiwis need to be careful. Consider using online tools to help screen online threats. Norton Secure Browser is a free search engine with advanced cybersecurity features that keep your searches and online interactions private and untraced. It also blocks malicious websites and helps stop phishing attempts by preventing people from downloading potentially malicious content or accessing dangerous links,” says Gorrie.
To help New Zealanders stay safer this holiday season, Norton also recomm
