Black Friday 2026 in Durban: 5 ways to avoid online shopping scams
A Durban payments company shares how to spot fake online stores, dodgy courier SMSes and bogus bank alerts, plus what to do if you’ve already paid.
Black Friday has somehow extended into Black November, giving us lots of opportunity to spend money ahead of the festive season, but it’s also a great time for scammers to do their own festive shopping.
Some scams are polished and professional enough to fool even cautious shoppers. Fake retail websites, cloned social media adverts, and messages pretending to come from your bank or courier company are just some of the tricks doing the rounds.
The co-founders of the Durban-born payments technology company, Swiffy – which operates in high-risk payment sectors – share five tips to help you stay protected this Black Friday.
READ: Durban fintech Swiffy scores Premier League partnership with Hull City
1. Think before you approve a payment
Black Friday is all about urgency. Limited-time offers, countdown clocks, and supposedly ‘exclusive’ discounts encourage you to make quick decisions.
Unfortunately, scammers know this and use the pressure to their advantage.
According to Swiffy co-founder Jadie Naicker, fraud doesn’t always look suspicious. It might appear as a legitimate checkout page, a helpful customer service agent, or an ordinary banking notification.
Before approving any transaction, ask yourself:
- Did you initiate this payment?
- Is the amount correct?
- Does the merchant name match the retailer you’re buying from?
- Were you redirected to an unexpected payment page?
- Is someone pressuring you to complete the transaction immediately?
If something doesn’t feel right, stop. A bargain isn’t worth compromising your banking details.
2. Know which Black Friday scams to watch for
Scammers are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and their tactics are evolving alongside online shopping trends.
Swiffy co-founder Neil Schwartzman warns that criminals are impersonating legitimate retailers, banks, delivery companies, and payment providers.
Some of the scams to look out for include:
- Fake online stores: Fraudulent websites advertise heavily discounted products, take your payment and never deliver the goods.
- Phishing messages: SMSes, emails, and WhatsApp messages contain links designed to steal your banking details or login information.
- Cloned retail websites: Scammers copy the branding, logos, and product images of genuine businesses to make fake stores appear legitimate.
- Fake courier payment requests: Messages claim that you need to pay an additional delivery fee or customs charge to receive a parcel.
- Bank impersonation: Someone pretending to represent your bank contacts you to request sensitive information or persuade you to approve a transaction.
- Fake proof of payment: Fraudsters send edited banking notifications or screenshots to convince sellers that money has been transferred.
- AI-generated impersonation: Increasingly convincing messages, images, and other content can be used to impersonate trusted people or businesses.
The golden rule? Never assume a message, website or payment notification is genuine simply because it looks professional.
3. Don’t trust the padlock alone
That little padlock symbol next to a website address might make you feel better about entering your card details, but it doesn’t guarantee you’re shopping with a legitimate retailer.
The padlock and ‘https’ indicate that your connection is encrypted. They don’t confirm the business operating the website is genuine.
Swiffy recommends taking a few extra steps before making a purchase:
- Check the website’s exact URL for spelling mistakes or unusual domain names.
- Visit retailers through their official websites rather than clicking on promotional links in messages or social media adverts.
- Look for independent customer reviews and check whether the business has a credible online presence.
- Be cautious of unexpected redirects, unusual payment methods, and additional fees at checkout.
- Never share your banking PIN, password, or one-time PIN (OTP) with anyone.
- It’s also worth checking your banking app before approving a payment. Make sure the merchant name and amount match your intended purchase.
4. Give your banking security a Black Friday makeover
A little preparation before the sales begin can help reduce the risk of losing money to online fraud.
Swiffy’s co-founders recommend taking these precautions:
- Lower your transaction limits: Temporarily adjust your daily card and online payment limits to match your Black Friday shopping budget.
- Use a virtual card: If your bank offers virtual cards for online shopping, consider using one instead of your physical bank card.
- Know how to freeze your card: Familiarise yourself with your banking app’s card-freeze function so you can act quickly if something goes wrong.
- Check banking notifications: Decline any payment notification you didn’t initiate.
- Save your bank’s fraud contact details: Make sure you know how to report suspicious activity through official banking channels.
5. Act quickly if you think you’ve been scammed
Realising you’ve fallen for an online scam can be stressful, but don’t panic. What you do next matters:
- Contact your bank using its official contact number or banking app.
- Block or freeze any compromised cards.
- Change passwords for affected accounts, particularly if you’ve reused the same password elsewhere.
- Review your recent transactions and report anything suspicious.
- Keep evidence, including screenshots, messages, emails and transaction references, to support your fraud report.
Be particularly wary of anyone contacting you and offering to recover your stolen money in exchange for a fee or your banking details. Fraudsters sometimes target people a second time after an initial scam.
Basically: slow down, verify the details and think twice before approving a payment.
A few extra seconds of caution could save you a very expensive Black Friday lesson!
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