Gail Taylor, the Detroit Community Manager for Chase Bank, left, listens as Jalon Nelson of the Detroit Police Department, speaks to a senior citizen community group about various scams to be aware of during a workshop at the Corktown Community Center on Michigan Avenue in Detroit on Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025.

Maybe this holiday season, you'll get a call from a loved one — a child away at college, a grandchild, your niece in Virginia — and they'll tell you exactly what they want for Christmas. And, well, they just happen to be online at a site that has it on sale.

All you have to do is give them your credit card number now and they can buy the hard-to-find item that you can give them as a gift.

Watch out, it could very well be a scam — and we're not just talking about a real relative with a never-ending holiday wish list.

Scammers only need a short audio clip to use artificial intelligence to make a call seem like it's coming from someone you know who is asking you for a special gift for the holidays, warns Detroit Police Department officer Jalon Nelson, who serves as a public information officer for the department.

The old "grandparents scam" — where victims are asked to send cash to get a grandchild out of jail — can easily morph into something else and seem pretty believable. Con artists gather information in advance and craft a narrative that would strike a chord with you.

Sure, the voice can sound just like your grandson. But it's not. Instead, AI was used to clone the voice of that loved one.

"Don’t trust the voice," according to an earlier alert from the Federal Trade Commission. "Call the person who supposedly contacted you and verify the story."

Scams for the holidays

Welcome to the holiday scamming season. We're spending tons of money on travel, gifts for relatives we hardly see, toys for the kids and more. The criminals know we're stressed and they're ready to pounce in all sorts of ways to steal our cash.

"Black Friday is here now — it's no longer on Friday," said Gail Taylor, community manager for Chase in Detroit.

Taylor and Nelson joined on Tuesday, Nov. 18, to alert seniors gathered for a workshop at the Chase Bank branch in Corktown, Michigan. JPMorganChase hosted more than 20 such workshops across the country during International Fraud Awareness Week to provide consumers with more tools to prevent scams.

"We see an uptick in holiday scams big time," Taylor told the Detroit Free Press, part of the USA TODAY Network, in an interview before the event.

Many people, she noted, want to travel to see friends and family in the coming weeks and they're already getting hit with fake travel sites that look very real but only steal your information and your money.

The extensive flight cancellations in November during the federal government shutdown only triggered more confusion — and possibly another opening for scammers hoping to cash in in Christmas.

The Better Business Bureau warns that scammers will impersonate online ticket airline brokers and then call back asking for more personal details, including more banking information, after the traveler has already paid with a credit card. No legitimate company will do that.

In some scams, the crooks will call to say your flight was canceled and tell you that you must pay more fees to secure another seat.

Chase experts suggest that you search for the names of some travel sites along with terms like “scam,” “complaints” or “reviews.” Always book with a credit card in case a dispute arises.

Both Taylor and Nelson stressed that consumers should take extra time to verify any text, phone call or promotion before taking any action. Make sure that you take your time.

"Pause, stop, they want you to panic," Taylor warns.

Oh, the crooks sound real convincing

Maybe they want you to rush and buy a hot deal that's only being offered at a super low price for a limited time. Make sure you're dealing with a legitimate retailer.

Maybe they want to tap into the holiday frenzy to make you think you forgot to pay your electric bill.

Taylor said her niece recently called her after someone claimed she owed $1,000. The niece was in the process of shopping for a home and didn't want her credit damaged. But her aunt told her to step back, and do some research before handing over any money.

Was the old bill real? It wasn't.

How did the niece finally realize it? She returned the call of the scammer who suddenly turned very rude — and she realized that no legitimate company is going to employ people who scream at you to collect money from a customer.

"The goal is to create panic, to create urgency, so you don't think straight," Taylor said.

"You want to pause. You don't want to react."

Unfortunately, rushing — and thinking only later — are the name of the game throughout the holidays.

How holiday shoppers are losing money already

Shoppers lost money to scams long before Thanksgiving.

One consumer spent about $50 after a social media influencer promoted a deal for five mercury glass Christmas trees. Instead, the five short, cheap plastic trees showed up. The consumer requested a refund; the company only offered $3 back, according to a post on the Better Business Bureau's Scam Tracker.

Another consumer reported losing about $26 after responding to ads on TikTok promoting Comfrt hoodies on sale for $6 each. Nothing arrived.

Typically, Comfrt sweatshirts, spelled without an O, can sell for $50 and up.

All sorts of fake ads can pop into your favorite social media platform during the holiday shopping season, too.

Scammers do a very convincing job of impersonating trusted brand names on social media, giving you the impression that you've spotted a great deal or a popular but hard to find toy. Or maybe they tempt you with something super cute that you do not think you can find anywhere else.

"If you buy, you might not get what you ordered. You might get a knock-off or nothing at all," according to an earlier alert by the Federal Trade Commission.

Sadly, it's easy to get tricked when bad actors rehearse well to convincingly impersonate someone else to grab our money by offering exclusive deals or hard-to-find items.

In late October, a 40-year-old woman in Michigan lost $1,000 after she contacted someone on TikTok who said they were selling Detroit Lions tickets. According to a report she made with Troy Police, the seller offered four NFL tickets at $250 each.

She sent the payment through Zelle. Afterward, according to Troy Police, the victim never received the tickets and was blocked by the seller. And she lost her cash.

Zelle doesn't offer the payment protections of a credit card; you cannot dispute a charge if you don't receive what you ordered.

"When you're using Zelle, you're using cash," Taylor says simply.

How to avoid brushing scams, ticket scams and more

As you shop during the holidays, here are solid steps to take to protect your money:

Beware of bargains

It might sound reasonable to be able to find someone willing to sell Lions tickets at $250 each. Depending, of course, where the seats are located. Typically, though, you're better off going through a site like, Ticketmaster, not TikTok.

Ticketmaster's online alert states that the website will "never ask you to buy an Amazon Gift Card, iTunes Gift Card, money order or any other third-party gift card as a form of payment in exchange for tickets."

Zelle warns about ticket scams online, too. "Be on the lookout for sellers insisting on payment through Zelle or another direct payment method, keeping in mind that certain payment types can’t be refunded."

Ticket scammers can be quite convincing, perhaps sending a photo of a counterfeit ticket with forged barcodes and real logos. You might even be sent a picture of a genuine ticket that was already sold to someone else.

Be careful buying gift cards

In some cases, consumers are tempted by discounts being offered on gift cards on third-party sites only to later discover that they've been scammed. A warning: Bad actors will sell expired gift cards. Chase experts say: Don't respond to an unsolicited email or text message offering you a gift card; it’s often a way to track your online activity.

Watch out for the Black Friday frenzy

If you're shopping at the mall, watch your purse or wallet and make sure that you don't leave packages in sight in the car. If you're shopping online, be prepared for a surge of so-called Black Friday deals that crooks plant online.

If purchasing on a platform or marketplace, Chase experts suggest that you stay on the platform to complete transactions and communicate with sellers, as protections often only apply when you use the platform.

Dig for details on return policies

Shoppers continue to face ridiculous return policies and the chance that some online vendors just cannot be reached when something goes wrong.

Be skeptical

Take a super-close look at any website. Study the URL, looking for misspelled words or a string of odd numbers, to make sure the website isn't being run by a scammer. Chase experts note that you want to "ensure the URL starts with 'https://' — the ‘s’ stands for secure — and avoid clicking on links from unsolicited emails or texts."

Look for deals that are real

It's not a deal if someone is setting you up to lose money. We've heard of retailers that closed stores or went out of business. And these days, some scammers try to sound legitimate by advertising that they have closeout deals from those stores. Warning: You're going to end up with damaged goods, counterfeits or nothing at all.

Know scams can start out on social media

While the next ad you see on social media might look very professional, it also can be incredibly fake. Or you might get a fake text, email or direct message about a problem or product.

"Criminals use these channels to trick people into sending them money, no matter which payment method they use," said Mary-Helen McElfresh, Zelle's vice president of smart payments, in a statement sent to the Detroit Free Press.

"And as the holidays ramp up, scammers ramp up too — from fake pet sales and bogus event tickets on online marketplaces to charity scams that prey on generosity," McElfresh said.

Zelle recommends that you only send money to people you know and small businesses that you know and trust.

If you’re buying something online, the consumer is advised to take an extra step to actually see the item in person, say a puppy for sale, before sending any money via Zelle or another payment. Once a Zelle payment goes through, it can’t be canceled.

Unlike a credit card, Zelle and your bank do not offer a protection program for any authorized payments made with Zelle. If you do not receive the gift your ordered online or it is nothing like the picture when it shows up, you're not able to dispute that purchase if you paid by Zelle. A credit card will offer more protection.

Hang up

Many scammers know people can get lonely, especially around the holidays. A senior living alone might not have talked to anyone for a day or two, Taylor said, so they're happy if someone calls out of the blue and says, "Hey, Gail."

The longer you stay on the phone, though, the greater the odds that you'll hand over key personal information, agree to hand over money or even give someone more audio to use in an AI-related scam.

Criminals want to get account usernames, passwords, Social Security numbers, Medicare numbers, credit card numbers and other information that can be used for financial fraud.

Don't fall for the "card declined" scam

Be extra cautious any time you get a "card declined" message.

When you're dealing with scammers, a website can suddenly say your card was declined. The crooks hope you'll give them another credit card number so they can hit you up more.

Call the bank

Taylor recommends calling the bank, even if you're not a customer, to see if a text or call that seems suspicious is real.

Many times, a bank might be able to intervene before a scam hits. Chase notes that it uses advanced technology to spot when customers might be at risk of a scam and prevent some scams before they happen.

"If suspicious activity is detected, customers may receive an in-app warning or the payment may be stopped — especially for transactions linked to social media or other high-risk sources," according to Chase.

But it's vital that the consumer take steps too, including signing up for alerts from your bank about suspicious activity and being on the lookout for potential scams.

Scammers stole a record-breaking $12.5 billion from U.S. consumers in 2025, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

Michigan consumers reported losses totaling $204 million to all types of fraud in 2024. That's up from $151.7 million in 2023. The median loss was $305 in 2024.

Get ready for the delivery scams

It's the season for a surge of delivery-related scams.

A new twist: Crooks are sending packages that you didn’t order often without a return address.

It's called a "brushing scam" that's designed to get you to scan a QR code, which might install malware on your phone, according to an alert from the Better Business Bureau.

How it works: The package contains a QR code, according to a BBB alert in November. "The code comes with instructions to scan it to find out who sent the package or how to start a return. Scanning the QR code can lead to a phishing website or download malware onto your device," the BBB states.

As we move further into the holidays, expect a surge of unsolicited mobile text messages with strange web links that indicate problems with an Amazon delivery, a UPS delivery or a package from the U.S. Postal Service. Do not respond.

Scammers don't just impersonate your grandson; they will impersonate delivery services too.

Contact personal finance columnist Susan Tompor: stompor@freepress.com. Follow her on X @tompor.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Scams are exploding during the holidays. Here's how to stay safe.

Reporting by Susan Tompor, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press

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