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- Flying off on vacation: how scammers deceive tourists before the New Year
Flying off on vacation: how scammers deceive tourists before the New Year
As the New Year approaches, the activity of fraudsters in the tourism sector is growing, experts have warned about this. Intruders in December are trying to steal the money of future travelers — having fallen for fraudulent schemes, the latter risk being left without vouchers and losing large amounts of money. For details on how scammers deceive tourists before the New Year, which deception schemes are most relevant at the end of 2025 and how to protect yourself from them, read the Izvestia article.
What is known about the latest travel schemes of scammers
The experts of BI.ZONE Digital Risk Protection told Izvestia that with the approach of the New Year, the activity of fraudsters in the tourism sector is growing. Having fallen for the schemes of intruders, users risk being left without vouchers and losing large amounts of money. At the same time, experts identify the following among the main fraudulent scenarios::
Fake travel packages
Asian destinations are in high demand in winter. Care should be taken when choosing travel packages on online bulletin boards, social networks, and messengers. Attackers often pose as tour operators and offer last-minute tours at bargain prices. After receiving the prepayment, they stop contacting and leave the victim with nothing.
Help with paperwork and search for profitable offers
On online platforms, scammers publish ads promising to help with paperwork abroad, as well as sell cheap promo codes for hotels and business class tickets. The standard scenario is that after receiving an advance payment or the victim's bank card details, the attackers disappear.
Fraud through travel communities and chat rooms
The attackers monitor activity in thematic communities and groups in messengers. Then they contact users under the pretext of clarifying the details of the trip. To gain trust, they begin the dialogue with questions about travel, and then offer to "invest profitably" or purchase tickets at a low price. If the victim is interested, the attackers ask for an advance payment, and then disappear with the money.
Why is the topic of New Year's travel interesting to scammers
The tourism sector attracts scammers in December, because, as a rule, users associated with it are in a vulnerable position, says Alexandra Shmigirilova, GR director of the Security Code information security company, in an interview with Izvestia. The fact is that on holidays it is customary to go somewhere on vacation, which means that consumers are actively interested in travel arrangements and are looking for this information everywhere, trying to choose the most attractive offer.
— At the same time, many standard "red flags", which in another situation could serve as a signal of potential fraud, are not perceived as such in this context — for example, the topic of money, — the expert explains.
In addition, according to Alexandra Shmigirilova, tourism today mostly works online, which is very convenient for scammers — you don't need to spend a lot on implementing schemes: sometimes a fake website and a not very sophisticated user are enough. New Year's holidays are one of the most "profitable" periods for scammers, says a data analyst at the coordination center for domains .RU/.Russian Federation Evgeny Pankov. People are in a state of stress and excitement: before traveling, they need not only to complete all their work, but also to have time to buy tickets, book a hotel or tour, and also think over a vacation program.
— The demand for trips and trips in December is traditionally high, and there are a lot of burning offers, so decisions are often made quickly and impulsively — this is exactly what scammers use, — says the expert.
What schemes on the topic of New Year's trips have you encountered before
New Year's travel schemes have been relevant for years, says Sergey Polunin, head of the Gazinformservice IT Infrastructure Solutions protection group, in an interview with Izvestia. In particular, in 2023-2024, non-existent last—minute tours were sold through messengers, mythical apartments for the New Year were rented through online ad platforms, and fake low-cost airlines sold tickets at attractive prices.
— It is important to understand that New Year's phishing revolves around literally several topics that are bizarrely combined depending on the chosen technologies, — the expert notes.
Digital duplicates of sites familiar to users remain relevant, adds Alyona Yartseva, an analyst at the Positive Technologies research group. Only a couple of letters in the browser link may differ, but in general, the quality of such fakes has increased significantly in recent years. A cold call from a "tour operator" may also be the beginning of the scheme. The attackers ask to transfer money for a profitable tour, and then report disrupted operations several times, while receiving each transaction.
The fraudsters' "tourist" schemes are aimed at people who want to actively spend the New Year, but at the same time save money, as well as busy people who start planning holidays just before the holidays, says Sergey Tunchik, head of the Information Security sector of the Digital Economy League. By creating an atmosphere of urgency and "last minute" vouchers, the attackers are playing on the haste and willingness of users to pay instantly.
"These schemes may also be aimed at older travelers who are less familiar with the nuances of online booking," says the expert. — Older people rarely make online purchases and may not be aware of any cheating methods.
According to Sergey Tunchik, such users can easily rely on large discounts, which are actually unrealistic, or, for example, not check the information about the owner of the rented housing. The tricks of scammers lead to the loss of money set aside for a New Year's holiday. By entering confidential information for booking or making a payment, criminals can steal it and create conditions for further fraud when victims' contact details are entered into "lists of potential victims." All this leads to frustration, stress, loss of trust in online shopping and, of course, spoils the festive mood.
How to protect yourself from "tourist" fraud schemes
In order to protect yourself from fraud schemes related to New Year's travel, experts interviewed by Izvestia advise following certain safety rules. So, if you find a good offer in the search results, look at the website address, advises the head of BI.ZONE Digital Risk Protection Dmitry Kiryushkin.
"A fraudulent resource may differ from the original one by just one character," the expert explains. — In order to bring a phishing site to the top of the search, attackers buy ads, so all advertising links should be treated with particular caution. Pay attention to browser and antivirus warnings about suspicious domains.
In addition, Dmitry Kiryushkin advises to remain vigilant in messengers and social networks. Cybersecurity experts have repeatedly documented cases where scammers left fake positive reviews and links to their resources in the comments to posts in official groups.
In turn, Nikita Novikov, an expert on cybersecurity at Angara Security, recommends not making an advance payment by transfer to an individual's card — it is safer to use secure electronic payment systems, 3D Secure bank cards, or pay for a tour when receiving services at the operator's office.
In addition, it is important to check the reputation of the seller / operator: look for real company details, address, reviews on independent sites, contact phone number and information through the search. Do not provide passport, bank, or personal information upon request via messengers or through forms on suspicious sites.
"Finally, use a security solution — it will warn you if you try to access a phishing or scam resource, as well as install malicious software," concludes Olga Altukhova, senior content analyst at Kaspersky Lab.
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