Winter-specific scams and how to spot them

As the coldest season of the year rolls around, so do a specific set of scam tactics.

New findings revealed that during winter, crypto and investment, imposter and tech support scams see a considerable jump. 

Crypto alone saw a 225% increase in 2025 compared to the rest of the year, and seems to be resurfacing now.

Cyber security site Norton described these as masquerading, long-con financial scams where people use guaranteed return pitches, asking suddenly for urgent funds to steal money. 

But experts stressed that fake holiday house booking sites are taking a worrying priority this time around, as Kiwis try to escape the winter blues.

Since late 2025, Norton has identified 353 fraudulent landing pages pretending to be available accommodation - making up roughly 38,000 rooms from all over the world. 

Dean Williams, one of their principal systems engineers, warned rova that scammers are just as aware of seasonal and online trends as the average person. And accessible technology such as AI is making it harder to catch them in the act. 

“They use direct messages in encrypted messaging apps, luring people to elaborate but fake trading platforms… They use AI to make them very hard to spot. Often scammers will harvest personal information from the dark web to make the message more convincing and pointed.”

But it’s emotion that ensures a victim is hooked according to Williams.

“I think any time that you're confronted with an unsolicited request, stop and have a think whether this is too good to be true or if something is off.”

Williams shared some top tips on how to spot and avoid scammers during the winter season:

• If you have to pay to get paid, it’s a scam. Doesn't matter if it’s a lottery prize, an investment payout, or a package delivery.

• If a stranger is fast-tracking the relationship, slow down. Speed is the tell.

• If a message uses real details about you, that doesn’t make it real.

• If a link tells you to hurry, don’t click it. 

• If something feels off, it likely is. Trust your instinct.