A majority of Irish consumers were targeted by scams in the last three months of 2024 alone, according to new research.

A study conducted by Censuswide on behalf of Wise surveyed 2,000 Irish adults and found that 81% of Irish customers were targeted by scammers last year. 

The results also indicated that 82% of people think scams are getting more sophisticated and 77% believe scam attempts increased significantly last year.

On Newstalk Breakfast, 'For Tech Sake' podcast host Elaine Burke said the standard advice for avoiding scams is becoming “more challenging”.

“I suppose the standard advice is usually to look out for things that look suspicious or even inconsistent but that is becoming that little bit more challenging, because [scammers] are getting better at doing these things,” she said.

“The biggest flag is actually anything that comes to you and creates a sense of urgency, panic or pressure to act very quickly without thinking.

“That is actually the core to most scams and that's why they target things like a missed delivery or a payment that didn't go through or a problem with your bank account - things that will cause you to have that panic and pressure to act instantly.”

Visualisation of phishing and online fraud. Image: Alamy

Ms Burke recommended that people question if something is a scam should contact the person or place the call, email or text came from. 

“I always recommend [that] if you ever have any kind of question mark over a demand for details or payment, you should contact that provider directly, not through the means that they've reached out to you in case that has been compromised, but to find an alternative way to contact them,” she said.

"It's so common"

A recent scam circulated where an email acted as if Booking.com would cancel your hotel booking without you providing updated card details.

“They'll pick the things that are popularly used and that people have a strong desire around - like you don't want your hotel to get cancelled, you don't want to miss the delivery, you don't want your bank account to be compromised,” Ms Burke said.

“You don't want to be in trouble because you didn't pay a toll payment - and it's so common, because think of the number of people who use those tolling systems here in Ireland… so you know, it's a scam if you get the text and you don't drive, but you don't know if you are a driver.”

Ms Burke said it’s important to “keep your wits about you”.

Listen back here:

A cybercriminal reaching through a laptop to steal an online shopper's credit card. Image: Alamy