Scammers are most frequently impersonating major tech brands, especially those tied to popular devices and gaming platforms, like Apple, Nintendo, Samsung, Disney, and Steam, according to new data from McAfee Labs.
Apple is the number one brand cybercriminals pretend to be, often creating convincing fake websites that look like real Apple pages, the report says. Following it in the top most impersonated mainstream consumer brands are Nintendo, Samsung, Disney, and Steam.
From the McAfee report: “Apple stands out within the most impersonated mainstream consumer brands with the highest volume of URL scams of any brand analyzed. Nintendo follows closely, driven largely by the massive demand for the Switch 2 during the 2025 holiday season. Samsung impersonations are primarily tied to scams involving phones and accessories, while Disney scams stem mostly from fake Disney+ streaming offers and account alerts. Steam also appears frequently in scam URLs, with fraud tied to Steam gift cards used for PC gaming and the rising popularity of the Steam Deck, now considered the most widely used handheld PC for gamers.”
Here are McAfee Labs’ tips for a scam-free season:
- Pause before you click. If you get a text, DM, or email about a deal, go directly to the retailer’s site or app instead.
- Stick to trusted retailers. If the deal feels rushed or the brand looks unfamiliar, it’s safer to skip it.
- Use AI-powered scam protection. Use trusted tools like McAfee’s Scam Detector, available in all core plans, that spot and flag suspicious links and scams before they can do harm.
- Watch for red flags. If a message pressures you to act fast, demands payment through gift cards or wire transfers, asks for personal info, or insists you stay on the line or keep quiet – hit pause. These are classic scam signals. Taking a moment to think can be the difference between scoring a deal and walking into disaster.
- Protect your shopping experience. Turn on two-factor authentication for extra account protection, use strong, unique passwords, shop only on secure websites (look for “https://” and the padlock icon), monitor your bank and credit card statements for unusual charges.
Methodology
McAfee’s analysis of holiday shopping scams is based on real-world web activity from October to November 2025, focusing on luxury brand and mainstream consumer product impersonation. McAfee Labs researchers identified malicious and suspicious URLs by querying a curated list of brand keywords, formatted to match typical web addresses, against McAfee’s web reputation telemetry.
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Article provided with permission from AppleWorld.Today