Staying Secure This Black Friday: What Every Business Needs to Know
November 14, 2025
Return to blog list
Black Friday has become one of the most significant retail events in South Africa, driving record levels of consumer spending both online and in-store. In 2024, total retail sales for November were projected to reach around R136 billion, up roughly 17% year on year, with Black Friday being the key contributor to this surge, according to a study conducted by the Bureau of Market Research. For businesses, this presents an enormous opportunity to boost sales, attract new customers, and build brand loyalty.
With the spike in transaction volume and speed comes heightened risk. During Black Friday, consumers rush to secure deals; businesses process payments at a rapid pace, and fraudsters exploit the resulting pressure points. The Southern African Fraud Prevention Service (SAFPS) reported a 32% surge in fraud incidents ahead of Black Friday, highlighting how opportunistic criminal activity escalates as businesses focus on handling higher demand.
Fraudsters thrive in environments where speed and volume outweigh scrutiny. As businesses gear up for one of the busiest shopping periods of the year, understanding these risks and taking proactive steps to mitigate them is critical to staying secure and maintaining customer trust.
Common Fraud Risks
Black Friday’s surge in online transactions brings several types of fraud into focus. These threats often appear only marginally suspicious at first but can cause major financial and reputational damage if missed.
Card not present (CNP) fraud
One of the most common forms of payment fraud during Black Friday occurs when fraudsters use stolen card details to make unauthorised purchases online or via mobile. Without physical verification, businesses face higher risk of chargebacks and revenue loss once fraud is discovered. In South Africa, CNP fraud made up 68% of gross fraud losses in 2023, increasing 19% from the previous year according to The South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC).
Account takeovers
Fraudsters gain access to customer or business accounts by stealing login credentials through phishing or data breaches. Once inside, they can change passwords, make fraudulent transactions, or extract sensitive information.
Fake refund scams
Scammers pose as legitimate customers requesting refunds for purchases they never made or for products that were never delivered. They use stolen cards or account information to trigger refunds to their own accounts. Detection is difficult until losses have already occurred. High transaction volumes and rapid processing during Black Friday make businesses particularly vulnerable
Social engineering and phishing attacks
During the Black Friday surge, fraudsters target both consumers and businesses with phishing emails, messages, or calls that exploit urgency and reduced vigilance. In South Africa, digital banking fraud rose 45% in 2023, and experts warn that the Black Friday period provides an ideal environment for these attacks as cited by the Business Connexion Group (BCX).
These risks do not have to define your Black Friday. With the right payment partner and fraud safeguards in place, you can focus on growth and not losses
Preventative Measures
Black Friday is a high-stakes period for businesses, but there are practical steps that can help reduce exposure to fraud. Taking a proactive approach allows businesses to protect revenue, maintain customer trust, and make the most of the sales surge.
Verify every transaction
Implement strong verification processes for online purchases. This can include address checks, CVV confirmation, and multi-factor authentication to confirm the buyer’s identity before processing payment. Even small verification steps can prevent a significant number of fraudulent transactions.
Watch for suspicious patterns
Monitor transaction activity closely during Black Friday. Look for unusual spikes in order volume, high-value purchases from new customers, or repeated failed payment attempts. Early detection allows businesses to flag suspicious activity before it results in financial loss.
Empower your team against fraud
Your staff are the first line of defense. Make sure they recognise common scams, phishing attempts, and suspicious behaviors. Regular reminders and short training sessions can make a real difference during high-pressure periods.
Secure payments with confidence
Partner with a trusted payment provider like Ozow to ensure transactions are fast, reliable, and secure. With Ozow, you can access tools such as Account Verification Systems (AVS) and Transaction Verification Services (TVS) to help protect your business from fraud. These tools allow you to validate payment details and detect anomalies in real time, ensuring each transaction is legitimate before approval. Even small verification steps can make a significant difference in safeguarding your customers and your business.
Expert Guidance from Orca Fraud
Insights from Ozow’s trusted fraud prevention partner
Based on Orca Fraud’s experience, there is a sharp rise in account takeovers, fake merchant scams, phishing, social engineering, and card-not-present fraud during the Black Friday period. Fraudsters exploit consumer urgency and merchant pressure, using lookalike sites, spoofed payment pages, and stolen credentials to intercept transactions or redirect funds. On the merchant side, refund fraud, chargeback abuse, and synthetic identities also spike, particularly when manual checks can’t keep up.
Fraud thrives in moments of chaos, and Black Friday creates the perfect storm: massive volumes, urgency, and stretched teams. Many businesses relax risk thresholds to avoid false declines, which opens doors for attackers. With generative AI and “vibe coding” techniques, fraudsters can easily create hyper-realistic phishing pages that mimic trusted brands.
The single biggest mistake businesses make is trying to fight fraud in the moment. By then, attackers have already tested defences and scaled their operations. Effective prevention is about readiness, not reaction. Businesses should enter peak periods with layered controls, clear escalation paths, and pre-defined thresholds to detect and prevent fraud before it impacts revenue.
To stay ahead, Orca recommends:
- Tightened authentication for high-value orders.
- Automate decision-making using AI or rule-based orchestration.
- Deploy velocity checks, behavioural analytics, and device fingerprinting.
- Set up refund, dispute, and escalation protocols early.
- Train teams to recognise red flags.
- Monitor for fake sites and brand impersonation.
Fraud prevention is strongest when payment and risk intelligence work hand in hand. Payment providers control where money moves, but fraud starts long before and continues after a transaction. Ozow has partnered with Orca to integrate its AI-driven fraud orchestration technology into our payment ecosystem. This adds an additional layer of trust and security for both customers and merchants, especially during high-volume periods like Black Friday. By connecting payment signals, merchant activity, and behavioural risk data, the integration enables faster detection of suspicious activity, stronger protection against fraud, and a smoother, more reliable checkout experience.
Stay One Step Ahead This Black Friday
Fraud doesn’t have to spoil the busiest shopping season of the year. With proactive measures, careful monitoring, and the right payment partner, businesses can protect their revenue and maintain customer trust.
Prepare now by implementing verification processes, monitoring transactions, training your team, and leveraging secure payment solutions. Partnering with Ozow gives you the confidence to focus on growth and sales, knowing that security, speed, and reliability are built into every transaction.
Citations
-
