For Amazon sellers, Prime Day is one of the largest and most significant dates of the year. It’s when more individuals than normal browse product pages, inventory moves fast, and businesses have a large opportunity to meet their sales targets. But there’s a secret danger: Prime Day is when scammers also target sellers.
Amazon reported impersonation fraud increased by 80% throughout the Prime Day last year.
This is not a short-term problem. Indications are the issue is only worsening this year, with fraudsters employing more sophisticated tricks to deceive sellers when they are stressed and occupied.
Understanding how these scams operate and how to secure your account has never been more crucial.
The Anatomy of a Modern Impersonation Scam
Unlike old phishing tricks, today’s scams are much better at looking real. Many start with an email that seems official, using real Amazon logos and professional language. The message usually says there’s a problem with your account—maybe a fake policy violation, a payment issue, or a missing tax document that needs urgent action.
In 2024, Amazon noticed a 50% increase in scam emails during Prime Day.
This year, some sellers also got phone calls claiming to be from Amazon’s “account verification team. ” The caller might pressure you to install remote-access software or give away login details right away.
These scams are especially risky because of when they happen.
Prime Day is busy. Sellers are tracking ads, managing stock, and dealing with lots of customer emails. When a strange email or call comes in saying the account is suspended, it can cause worry. And that’s exactly what scammers want.
How These Scams Impact Sellers
Getting involved with these fake identity tricks can lead to big problems. Scammers often use stolen login details to take over your account. They might update your bank info to take money meant for you, remove or change your product listings, or place fake orders. Getting your account back can take a long time, maybe even weeks, which means you lose out on sales when business is the busiest.
Besides losing money, there’s also harm to your reputation.
If customers get fake or unauthorized items because your account was taken over, it’s hard to win back their trust. rebuilding trust can be really tough.
Staying One Step Ahead
Even though the scams become more clever, there are straightforward steps you can take to significantly reduce your risk.
Always remember first that Amazon never ever will call or email asking for personal information like passwords or credit card numbers.
They will not ask for remote access to your computer, and they will never offer a link to change your payment details.
If you get a notification that you need to act on immediately, hold off for a second.
Don’t open any links. Instead, open a new browser window and head directly to Seller Central at sellercentral. amazon. com. If there is indeed an issue, it will appear in your account dashboard.
It’s also necessary to educate everyone on your team about these scams.
Anyone who uses your account should understand how to identify fraudulent messages and how to report them. Lots of sellers also set up two-factor rules that make it so big changes to your account need approval from two users—this can prevent scammers before they can do any harm.
Finally, ensure your contact information and account
Why This Matters More Than Ever
The increase in fake identity scams isn’t just a random happening—it shows a bigger problem in the online shopping world. As more people buy and sell things online, especially on sites like Amazon, thieves have more chances to create convincing and focused scams.
For businesses that sell on Amazon, having their account taken over isn’t just a minor issue—it can hurt their whole business.
Keeping your information safe and watching out for new tricks isn’t just about keeping things clean—it’s about staying alive in the business.
Final Thoughts
As we navigate through yet another Prime Day cycle, being vigilant should be a daily practice for every seller. When you receive a message that is so urgent, sit down and consider it thoroughly for a while. It is always better to spend some extra time being cautious so that you can save a lot of stress and money issues later.
If ever in doubt regarding any message you receive, reach out to Amazon Seller Support directly via your official account rather than responding to the email or call.
If you’re not sure, check it out for sure—don’t just take what you hear.
