Black Friday, one of the most anticipated periods in retail, has also become one of the dates most targeted by scammers. And consumers are noticing this. In the last quarter, between July and September 2025, Google searches for the term “black fraud” grew 127%.
For Diego Daminelli, CEO of Branddi, a company specialized in brand protection in the digital environment, states that the increase reflects an important alert. “This type of search reveals a legitimate concern from consumers, who are trying to protect themselves, but it also shows that misinformation or insecurity are still very present,” analyzes.
The public's perception is not without reason. A study by Branddi, which used the company's own data, shows that new online scam threats intensify during holiday periods — times when brands increase their online presence and consumers are more active in shopping.
In the last 12 months, the 2024 Black Friday lead-up and the 2025 Consumer's Day were the periods with the highest records of new threats detected by Branddi, including the months preceding the dates (October and February).
During the last Black Friday, there were 105,567 new threats, equivalent to 1.7 thousand per day or 72 per hour. The most affected sectors were Retail, Fashion, Cosmetics, and Pet.
According to Daminelli, these peaks are directly linked to the increase in online activity. “These are moments when more people are looking for products and services for gifting. Because of this, companies invest in campaigns on social media and e-commerce platforms, in addition to increasing or creating ads on marketplaces, to attract consumers. But, amidst this movement, fake ads, profiles, or even websites also increase, which take advantage of the buzz to try to deceive people. And they have still been somewhat successful, unfortunately,” he states.
A Branddi survey conducted in August showed that 82% of customers have already encountered attempted online scams, with 25% of them involving campaigns that imitated original stores. And the most worrying data: 37,4% of consumers have actually fallen for some scam of this type recently.
“When a consumer is deceived by a fake ad, trust in the genuine brand is immediately shaken. Shielding digital reputation is no longer a differentiator, it's about survival,” emphasizes the CEO.
How brands can prepare for Black Friday 2025
For Daminelli, the first step is to create dedicated customer service channels for scam-related cases. “It can act in prevention, but mainly as a means of listening to consumers who see a scam attempt involving the brand's name or those who actually fall for one,” he comments.
Companies can also develop guidance guides and reinforce official profiles on social media, emails, and messaging apps, helping the public identify legitimate communications. “It's important to constantly reinforce the brand's correct profile on social networks, but not only that: companies can help customers discover if they are, in fact, shopping at the official store,” he says, recalling recent campaigns carried out by banks with this objective.
Other measures include sending newsletters with security guidelines and creating communication materials that are harder to copy, minimizing the risk of counterfeiting. “Even so, criminals will not stop using dates like Black Friday to attract victims. It is up to the brands to get ahead, protecting their customers and their own digital reputation. That is exactly where Branddi's role comes in,” concludes Daminelli.
