5 holiday scams you’re most likely to fall for

With the U.S. economy much improved, this year’s Christmas season is expected to be one of the best in years, and with the advance of digital technology, smartphones will be a key buying method for many consumers. Put those elements together and you have the latest “off the press” scam – the use of phony text messages and Whatsapp messages to spread malware, ransomware, and general misery. According to one study, one in every 25 apps supposedly issued by retailers especially for Black Friday were fraudulent – researchers found no fewer than 32,000 phony apps — delivering not news of a special “secret sale” but malware that could steal your credit card information, lock up your device in a ransomware scam, or unleash a malware agent on a corporate server if your device connects to the company’s network.