Valentine's Day, one of the key dates in the e-commerce calendar, offers cybercriminals a perfect opportunity to defraud consumers.
According to new research from cybersecurity experts Bitdefender, one in four Valentine's Day-themed spam emails between January 17 and February 8 were flagged as scams.
Geographically, the most affected areas were the United States and Ireland, which received 39% of the mail.
Italy is the country with the lowest impact of this type of message, with 2% of the total.
The main countries from which the scam communications originate are the United States, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
"As often happens, cyber criminals continue to recycle old tricks, reusing the same email templates to push recipients to buy gifts" explain the experts.
Some of the top subject lines used for Valentine's Day spam emails include stuffed animals, creams, sweets, and flowers.
These are apparently harmless messages but which, in reality, include links to deceptive sites designed to collect personal information and payment methods, or corrupt files with gift catalogues, which, if opened, install viruses on computers.
Analysts have also identified the rise, coinciding with Valentine's Day, of emails that push people to sign up to dating platforms to start fake relationships "which can cost victims large sums of money".
In this regard, Bitdefender reminds you to avoid sharing personal data and other sensitive information, such as photos and financial data, with strangers you meet online.
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