Before social media, there was Turbo Man.

If you remember Jingle All The Way, you’ll recall frantic parents chasing a must-have toy through malls, back alleys, and black markets. The pressure, scarcity, and willingness to ignore red flags isn’t new.

What has changed is the channel.

Today, that same urgency plays out on social media marketplaces, where fraudsters exploit seasonal demand for high-value gifts. Fake listings, off-platform payments, and rapid disappearance are now part of the holiday shopping playbook.

For risk and compliance teams, social platforms are no longer peripheral signals — they’re primary intelligence.

Worth a read on how these scams operate, and what to watch for: https://www.fivecast.com/blog/holiday-shoppings-dark-side-how-social-media-scams-thrive/