Black Friday always happens on the day after Thanksgiving in the United States. This year’s event took place on Friday, November 28. Given that Ghanaians often take advantage of the highly discounted prices offered on online shopping platforms, scammers also capitalise on the opportunity, resulting in a rise in fraud cases linked to the event.

Consequently, Ghana’s Cyber Security Authority (CSA), the national regulator responsible for overseeing all cybersecurity activities in the country, has warned the public to look out for online fraudsters to avoid being scammed.

In a statement dated November 28, the CSA explained how scammers typically operate, luring victims with attractive offers that are often too good to be true. Once victims make payments for the supposed goods, the scammers block them.

"Black Friday" marks a period in the shopping season where retailers offer significant discounts and promotions to buyers. The CSA anticipates a surge in online shopping scams and urges citizens to conduct due diligence when shopping online”, parts of the statement noted.

The CSA, in a three-detailed breakdown, outlined the major tactics used by scammers, brand impersonation, fake online shops, and phishing schemes, to deceive and defraud unsuspecting online shoppers.

Under Brand Impersonation, CSA explained that “Scammers mimic known brands on search engines such as Google and then use optimisation techniques to manipulate search results to list their contact information at the top. Unsuspecting victims, after engaging these scammers, make advance payments for products or services which they never receive. The scammers proceed to block their victims after receiving payments”.

The institution also warned the public about “Fake Online Shops: Scammers create online profiles, especially on social media, to sell non-existent goods and services at too-good-to-be-true prices. After making advance payments to mobile money wallets of the scammers, which usually do not bear the names of the supposed shops, victims are blocked and do not receive what they paid for”.

Another scheme these fraudsters adopt is making people disclose sensitive information about themselves, mostly the PIN of their credit/debit cards, among others. This is how they do it, according to CSA, the

“Scammers trick online shoppers into disclosing sensitive information such as credit/debit card information or account passwords by luring them via email, WhatsApp message, or SMS, to click on links that lead to legitimate-looking but fraudulent shopping sites”.

To avoid falling victim to any of these schemes, CSA made three recommendations.

Firstly, it warned customers to “Check via official websites or reliable sources to validate the contact details of shops/businesses rather than relying solely on search engine results. Additionally, check user reviews to verify the reputation of the contact, adding the need to “Limit shopping to reputable and well-known online stores and exercise caution with unfamiliar shopping sites. Be cautious of phone calls, emails or messages promising deals that seem too good to be true. Insist on payment after delivery and inspection of products”.

The CSA has sent this caution to the general public to prevent Ghana from losing more revenue, given how much we’ve lost to online shopping fraud from January to October.

“The CSA recorded a total of 266 cases of online shopping fraud from January to October 2025, with monetary losses of over GHS 600,000”, the statement added.

Meanwhile, in mid-October, the CSA announced over GH¢19 million in losses to cybercrime between January and September this year. This marks a 17 per cent increase in cyber crimes compared to the same period last year.

The Authority’s Head of Law Enforcement and Liaison at the CSA, Colonel George Eduah Bessi, made this revelation during a cybersecurity awareness webinar organised by the Africa Centre for Digital Transformation.

He expressed concern over the growing trend of online crimes in Ghana, highlighting the dangers it poses to the economy. Earlier in the year, the authority reported a steep rise in cybercrime, with a record 2,008 cyber incidents, marking a 52 per cent rise from 2024.

He said online among the crimes, the most prevalent is online fraud, which makes up about 36% of the reported cases, including mobile money scams, fake investment schemes, phishing attacks, and cyber bullying, mostly targeted at women and children, represented 25 per cent of all reported incidents.

Also, in a related development, Economic Adviser at the Office of the Vice President, Professor Sharif Mahmud Khalid, has recommended that the proposed passage of the Cybersecurity (Amendment) Bill, 2025, should be informed by consensus-building, bi-partisanship, and broad stakeholder engagement and not political expediency.

Since cybersecurity affects the general public, the Professor believes that there is a need for extensive consultations with key stakeholders and experts in the digital sector.

Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile on Saturday, November 1, Professor Khalid cautioned that,

“With such legislation, I will always call for bipartisan support,” he said. “The cybersecurity network in the country, including professionals, civil society organisations, and others whose work directly relates to this field, ought to be consulted to chart the way forward.”

Among the about nine stages a bill goes through to become a law in Ghana, as stipulated by the dictates of the 1992 constitution, Professor Khalid noted that legislative drafting is often one of the most complex stages of lawmaking, emphasising that the language used in bills must accurately reflect their intended purpose.

“Legislation can be a very challenging process, and drafting is often the hardest part. Sometimes the intent of a law is not clearly captured on paper, which is why it’s important to involve skilled drafters in the process,” he detailed.