#69 – Post-Holiday Retail Fraud Roundup, and How To Stop Fraud In 2025

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EFFECTED USERS: Online buyers and sellers

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SUMMARY: Blockchain may be able to fight all kinds of fraud, even physical goods.

In the days leading up to Black Friday, Holiday retail scams skyrocketed. Although the previous year (2023) was the worst year on record for retail fraud, the numbers for 2024 were up an unfathomable 692%. According to DarkTrace:

Analysis from Darktrace’s threat intelligence team using data from across the Darktrace customer fleet shows that during Black Friday week (25th to 29th November 2024) attempted Christmas-themed phishing attacks leapt 327%1 around the world, while Black Friday themed phishing attacks jumped 692% compared to the beginning of November (4th – 9th November)2, as bad actors seek to take advantage of consumers and holiday brands during the busy shopping period.

The United States retail sector faced an especially aggressive wave of cyber threats, with phishing attacks mimicking major holiday brands3 including Walmart, Target, and Best Buy increasing by more than 2000% during peak shopping periods.

 

Source: https://darktrace.com/news/black-friday-triggers-more-than-600-rise-in-attempted-retail-cyber-scams

Fraud has been a reality since the dawn of the Internet, but the massive flood of fakes (fake websites, fake ‘information’ fake products, fake identities) has been fueled by AI over the last year or two. In addition, the solution to all of those fakes may be different, or may be the same.

One such technology that is a candidate is the blockchain. As we have discussed blockchain:

  • designed for a ‘ledger’
  • first used for bitcoin
  • created in an anonymous whitepaper by “Satoshi Nakamoto”
  • designed for anonymity

Given the electronic nature of the blockchain, it would intuitively be used to combat electronic fraud such as identity and information. But what if it could be used for physical goods as well?

Here with me to discuss this today is Noam Krasniansky.

Noam is a successful entrepreneur, a winner on the popular TV show ‘Shark Tank’, and the founder of Komposite – a blockchain-based fraud prevention platform.

Welcome Noam.

Let’s start with how blockchain can be used to identify physical goods. What are the components necessary to make that happen?

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David W. Schropfer

David W. Schropfer is a technology executive, author, and speaker with deep expertise in cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and quantum computing. He currently serves as Executive Vice President of Operations at DomainSkate, where he leads growth for an AI-driven cybersecurity threat intelligence platform. As host of the DIY Cyber Guy podcast, David has conducted hundreds of interviews with global experts, making complex topics like ransomware, AI, and quantum risk accessible to business leaders and consumers. He has also moderated panels and delivered keynotes at major industry events, known for translating emerging technologies into actionable insights. David’s entrepreneurial track record includes founding AnchorID (SAFE), a patented zero-trust mobile security platform. He previously launched one of the first SaaS cloud products at SoftZoo.com, grew global telecom revenue at IDT, and advised Fortune 500 companies on mobile commerce and payments with The Luciano Group. He is the author of several books, including Digital Habits and The SmartPhone Wallet, which became an Amazon #1 bestseller in its category. David holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Miami and a Bachelor of Arts from Boston College.