Articles about Black Friday

In recent years the concept of Black Friday has spread beyond the US thanks to the web, such that millions around the world now go online at this time of year in search of bargains. But are the deals on offer really all they seem?

A new report from Smartproxy suggests that they might not be. It highlights the tactics some sites use to create the illusion of savings. Many increase the baseline prices of products in the weeks before Black Friday. So by the time the 'discounts' hit, they're often just bringing prices back to normal.

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Like every year, Black Friday marks the start of the end-of-year shopping season, and with it a significant increase in online sales. Although it's very much an American event, Black Friday in the UK has grown in popularity in recent years. In 2022, UK consumers spent a record £9.42 billion over the Black Friday weekend. Of this, 61 percent was spent online.

For e-retailers in the UK, the cyber weekend represents a significant increase in activity and traffic, leading to an accumulation of data generated and collected by e-commerce sites, requiring large storage capacities with a high environmental impact.

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New research from Kasada shows a 50 percent jump in bad bot activity during Black Friday week, with bot operators using customized open-source development tools, headless browsers, and new Solver Services to conduct their attacks at scale.

The report also shows a six times spike in automated gift card lookups this holiday shopping season, a key indicator that fraudsters are using bots to identify and steal gift card balances.

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The economy may be in the toilet right now, but just because inflation is at an all-time high, that doesn't mean you shouldn't buy gifts this year. In fact, with many financial experts predicting a painful 2023, we might as well take advantage of all the great 2022 Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals, right?

This year, there are many impressive discounts on technology-related purchases such as computer peripherals, devices and electronics. Below, we are sharing some of the best deals. While many of the sales will not start until Friday, some are live already. We will be continually adding deals to this list, so keep checking back!

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Cybercriminals are always keen to jump on current trends and events in order to promote their wares, so it's no surprise that as we approach one of the busiest online shopping periods there's inevitably a jump in related spam activity.

Researchers at Bitdefender Antispam Lab have been looking at the latest scams seeking to target consumers in the run up to Black Friday. Numbers have been ramping up in recent weeks, of all Black Friday-related correspondence during the Oct 26-Nov 9 timeline, 26 percent appeared on November 9.

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Does the perfect laptop docking station exist? Maybe for some consumers, but ultimately, no it does not. The reality is, consumers have differing needs and wants, so no single dock can truly please everyone. With that said, a new docking station from Plugable should prove to be a great option for most consumers.

Called "UD-ULTCDL," it technically is an update to an existing Plugable dock that carries the same name, but really, it is significantly different, meaning it should be considered an entirely new product. This second generation version features three HDMI ports as opposed to outdated DVI and VGA options. Not to mention, it now offers 100W charging (96W certified).

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The internet remains a dangerous place to inhabit; if anything, the risks presented by viruses and other forms of malware are greater than ever. While Windows includes the Defender tool to help keep you safe, it does not offer complete protection, and this is where the newly updated IObit Malware Fighter 9.0 can help you out.

This latest version features full support for Windows 11 and an expanded protection database. IObit, however, points out that this is not just a case of "blindly increasing" the size of the database, but also optimizing it by tidying up invalid and out-of-date entries.

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While the holiday season is a peak time for retailers, it also represents an opportunity for cybercriminals. This is particularly true of 2020 when more people than ever are likely to be shopping online.

Research from Comparitech analyzed around 30 million websites registered this month to identify efforts by cybercriminals to trick consumers looking for holiday shopping deals.

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I am currently testing the TCL 10 5G UW smartphone, and it is absolutely unreal how great it is for only $400. Not only do you get a huge 6.53-inch FHD+ display, but a Snapdragon 765 processor, 6GB RAM, 128GB storage (plus microSD slot), and an impressive 4500 mAh battery.

The phone comes pre-loaded with Android 10, but TCL promises an upgrade to Android 11 too. Hell, it even has a 3.5mm headphone jack. And yes, the cameras take excellent photos. This is seriously a lot of value for such a paltry price -- especially since it is compatible with Verizon's super-fast 5G UW network.

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Ah, Black Friday -- the day after Thanksgiving where people run to the store to score great deals on various items. Technology enthusiasts in particular love this day, as you can save a lot of money on computers, tablets, smartphones, and more. Over the years, however, Black Friday has begun starting earlier and lasting longer -- it no longer lasts just a single day. Hell, you don't even need to leave the house anymore -- many retailers put the same deals online.

Case in point, starting today, Microsoft is launching some of its Black Friday deals -- an entire week in advance! This includes both online and physical Microsoft Store locations. Not all of sales start today, however -- the company is staggering the dates a bit. And yes, this sale includes many of the the products you love, such as Xbox, Surface, and other Windows 10 devices.

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A new report from attack surface management company RiskIQ shows attackers will leverage popular brands and unsafe consumer shopping habits in the run up to the peak holiday shopping period.

Of all apps that can be found by searching for terms related to holiday shopping, 951, or two percent, are blacklisted as malicious -- a 20 percent increase.

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Black Friday 2019 may still be more then three weeks away, but Microsoft is already teasing some of the discounts and deals that it is going to be offering. You can expect to make big savings not only on the Surface Pro 7 and Surface Laptop 3, but also to pick up an HP laptop with 10th Gen Intel Core i3 for under $300.

The official date for Black Friday is November 29 this year, but Microsoft has a number of deals that start before this. In fact, you can start making savings as early as November 21! Here's what's on offer.

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Businesses should expect to see a spike in potential cyberattacks starting with Black Friday and Cyber Monday and continuing throughout the holiday shopping season, according to a new report.

The report from predictive security specialist Carbon Black shows that global organizations encountered a 57.5 percent increase in attempted cyberattacks during the 2017 holiday shopping season.

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Apple has a four-day shopping event running from today until Monday, promising shoppers "special offers when you buy select products". Running from the day that is a celebration of commercialism and capitalism, Black Friday, through the weekend and up to Cyber Monday, the Apple Shopping Event is -- unfortunately -- nothing to get excited about.

This is not entirely unexpected. Apple has form when it comes to disappointing Black Friday offers. If you were hoping for massive discounts, prepare to feel let down.

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YouTube only very recently gave people the option to watch big-name movies free of charge -- the only price to pay is enduring a few ads. Now, to celebrate Black Friday and to promote the upcoming release of The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part, you'll have the chance to watch the first film (The LEGO Movie) for free.

While the previously-announced free option means you have to watch ads, in this instance The LEGO Movie is itself an ad.

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