If you buy a gift card or voucher and that company goes bust, the recipient may never be able to use it, while it’s unlikely that you will get your money back. Even when a firm is taken over, terms and conditions can be changed, to make gift cards and vouchers more difficult to use.

For example, the women’s fashion chain, Jane Norman, went into administration in July and its gift card conditions were subsequently changed, so that consumers could only spend them on full price items & the total spend had to be twice the value of the gift voucher. According to Trading Standards, retailers are within their rights to do this as the terms and conditions of gift cards can be revised when a company goes into administration under insolvency law.

Shoppers planning to buy gift cards this winter should first do basic internet research on the company to check whether or not it’s solvent. Tell tale signs include profit warnings issued by firms and where there are huge numbers of complaints about non-delivery.

While cash may be a bit boring, it’s safer (at least for now!) and probably preferred by the recipient anyway.

This week we have 5 Vouchercodes as well as:

• Half Price Toy Sale continues
• Free Delivery offer extended!!!
• Great Home Entertainment offers

Check out our top promotions in the Hot Offers Section

Hot Offers  (valid until 06/12/11 unless otherwise stated)

• Daily Advent Deals. Check daily to discover our new advent deals – begin 1st December!
• Free voucher worth £10 when you spend £100 or more. Free voucher worth £5 when you spend £50 or more
• Free Delivery when you spend over £50 – enter code AFD on the payment page (ends 22/12/11)
• Save 20% on all 3D TV’s.  Choose from over 25 products
• Save up to half price on all digital cameras
• Up to half price toy sale. Over 1000 lines reduced
• Save £140 on the PS3 320GB console and 4 great games – Fifa 12, Battlefield, Uncharted 3, Gran Turismo 5 – Now 259.95
• 2 free games when you buy the XBOX 360 with Kinect and Kinect adventures
• Save up to half price on all games
• Save up to half price on selected games tables
• Save up to half price on all kids’ and adults’ bikes
• Save up to half price on all indoor furniture
• Save an extra 15% on all electrical personal care – on top of all our other price cuts
• Save up to half price on selected Christmas trees, lights and decorations.

Promotional Vouchers

• Save an extra 15% on all diamond jewellery – enter code SPARKLE on the payment page or quote code at the till in-store
• Free voucher worth £10 when you spend £100 or more. Free voucher worth £5 when you spend £50 or more
• Free Delivery when you spend over £50 – enter code AFD on the payment page (ends 22/12/11)
• Save an extra 10% on all digital TV recorders and set top boxes, on top of all our other price cuts – enter code VIEW10 on the payment page or quote code at the till in-store
• Save an extra 10% on all cookers, ovens and hobs – enter code COOK10 on the payment page or quote code at the till in-store

Cybercriminals are rubbing their hands together with glee as the holiday season approaches. Like many people you are probably busy making travel plans, shopping for gifts and bargains, updating Facebook and connecting with friends. However, the vast majority of people don’t have security protection for their smartphones or tablets, despite using them heavily during the holiday season!

You’ll need to stay one step ahead of this season’s cyber-scrooges, and make sure you have protection for all of your Internet-enabled devices. Otherwise, you could risk giving the bad guys the biggest gift of all – your own personal and financial information!

McAfee’s 12 Scams of Christmas

1. Mobile Malware: A recent National Retail Federation (NRF) survey, dated October 19, found that 52.6% of U.S. consumers who own a smartphone said they will be using their device for holiday-shopping related activities—whether it’s to research products, redeem coupons, or purchase holiday gifts. Malware targeted at mobile devices is on the rise, and Android smartphones are most at risk. McAfee cites a 76% increase in malware targeted at Android devices in the second quarter of 2011 over the first, making it the most targeted smartphone platform. New malware has recently been found that targets QR codes, a digital barcode that consumers might scan with their smartphone to find good deals on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, or just to learn about products they want to buy.

2. Malicious Mobile Applications -These are mobile apps designed to steal information from smartphones, or send out expensive text messages without a user’s consent. Dangerous apps are usually offered for free, and masquerade as fun applications, such as games. For example, last year, 4.6 million Android smartphone users downloaded a suspicious wallpaper app that collected and transmitted user data to a site in China.

3. Phony Facebook Promotions and Contests – Who doesn’t want to win some free prizes or get a great deal around the holidays? Unfortunately, cyberscammers know that these are attractive lures and they have sprinkled Facebook with phony promotions and contests aimed at gathering personal information. A recent scam advertised two free airline tickets, but required participants to fill out multiple surveys requesting personal information.

4. Scareware, or Fake Antivirus software – Scareware is the fake antivirus software that tricks someone into believing that their computer is at risk—or already infected—so they agree to download and pay for phony software. This is one of the most common and dangerous Internet threats today, with an estimated one million victims falling for this scam each day. In October 2010, McAfee reported that scareware represented 23% of all dangerous Internet links, and it has been resurgent in recent months.

5. Holiday Screensavers—Bringing holiday cheer to your home or work PC sounds like a fun idea to get into the holiday spirit, but be careful. A recent search for a Santa screensaver that promises to let you “fly with Santa in 3D” is malicious.  Holiday-themed ringtones and e-cards have been known to be malicious too.

6. Mac Malware – Until recently, Mac users felt pretty insulated from online security threats, since most were targeted at PCs. But with the growing popularity of Apple products, for both business and personal use, cybercriminals have designed a new wave of malware directed squarely at Mac users. According to McAfee LabsTM, as of late 2010, there were 5,000 pieces of malware targeting Macs, and this number is increasing by 10% month on month.

7. Holiday Phishing Scams – Phishing is the act of tricking consumers into revealing information or performing actions they wouldn’t normally do online using phony email or social media posts. Cyberscammers know that most people are busy around the holidays so they tailor their emails and social messages with holiday themes in the hopes of tricking recipients into revealing personal information.

• A common holiday phishing scam is a phony notice from UPS, saying you have a package and need to fill out an attached form to get it delivered. The form may ask for personal or financial details that will go straight into the hands of the cyberscammer.
• Banking phishing scams continue to be popular and the holiday season means consumers will be spending more money—and checking bank balances more often. From July to September of this year, McAfee Labs identified approximately 2,700 phishing URLs per day.
• Smishing –SMS phishing—remains a concern. Scammers send their fake messages via a text alert to a phone, notifying an unsuspecting consumer that his bank account has been compromised. The cybercriminals then direct the consumer to call a phone number to get it re-activated—and collects the user’s personal information including Social Security number, address, and account details.

8. Online Coupon Scams – An estimated 63% of shoppers search for online coupons or deals when they purchase something on the Internet, and recent NRF data (October 19, 2011) shows that consumers are also using their smartphones (17.3%) and tablets (21.5%) to redeem those coupons. But watch out, because the scammers know that by offering an irresistible online coupon, they can get people to hand over some of their personal information.

• One popular scam is to lure consumers with the hope of winning a “free” iPad. Consumers click on a “phishing” site, which can result in email spam and possibly dealing with identify theft.
• Consumers are offered an online coupon code and once they agree, are asked to provide personal information, including credit-card details, passwords and other financial data.

9. Mystery Shopper Scams – Mystery shoppers are people who are hired to shop in a store and report back on the customer service.  Sadly, scammers are now using this fun job to try to lure people into revealing personal and financial information.  There have been reports of scammers sending text messages to victims, offering to pay them $50 an hour to be a mystery shopper, and instructing them to call a number if they are interested.  Once the victim calls, they are asked for their personal information, including credit card and bank account numbers.

10.  Hotel “Wrong Transaction” Malware Emails – Many people travel over the holidays, so it is no surprise that scammers have designed travel-related scams in the hopes of getting us to click on dangerous emails. In one recent example, a scammer sent out emails that appeared to be from a hotel, claiming that a “wrong transaction” had been discovered on the recipient’s credit card.  It then asked them to fill out an attached refund form. Once opened, the attachment downloads malware onto their machine.

11.  “IT” Gift Scams – Every year there are hot holiday gifts, such as toys and gadgets, that sell out early in the season. When a gift is hot, not only do sellers mark up the price, but scammers will also start advertising these gifts on rogue websites and social networks, even if they don’t have them.  So, consumers could wind up paying for an item and giving away credit card details only to receive nothing in return. Once the scammers have the personal financial details, there is little recourse.

12. “I’m away from home” Scammers – Posting information about a vacation on social networking sites could actually be dangerous.  If someone is connected with people they don’t know on Facebook or other social networking sites, they could see their post and decide that it may be a good time to rob them.  Furthermore, a quick online search can easily turn up their home address.

“We don’t want consumers to be haunted by the scams of holidays past, present and future,” said Jim Walter, manager at McAfee Labs. “With the increase in malware and other attacks on smartphones, tablets and Macs, users need to stay vigilant and ensure they protect all of their devices, not just their home PC – they can’t afford to leave the door open to cyber-grinches during the busy holiday season.”

How to Protect Yourself
Internet users can protect themselves from cybercrime with the following quick tips from McAfee:

• Only download mobile apps from official app stores, such as iTunes and the Android Market, and read user reviews before downloading them.
• Be extra vigilant when reviewing and responding to emails.
• Watch out for too-good-to-be-true offers on social networks (like free airline tickets). Never agree to reveal your personal information just to participate in a promotion.
• Don’t accept requests on social networks from people you don’t know in real life. Wait to post pictures and comments about your vacation until you’ve already returned home.

Be sure you have active, comprehensive protection for all of your devices. McAfee® All Access is the only product that lets you protect a wide variety of Internet-enabled devices, including PCs, Macs, smartphones, tablets and netbooks, for one low price for individuals and families. Buy through Cashback Shopper & get 7.5% cashback on your order too – and this ISN’T a scam )

In preparation for the Halloween season, Matalan is pleased to offer another great voucher code!

Code: spooky15

Valid: 19/10/11 – 29/10/11

Offer: 15% Off Halloween Products

Conditions: valid only on Halloween products, and only valid on matalan.co.uk. NOT redeemable in store. discount is for 15% off Halloween products only.

Plus, you earn 2.5% cashback on all online orders

Platinum Card members enjoy access to airport lounges, worldwide annual travel insurance and preferential treatment when travelling. Other benefits include membership rewards, special offers, exclusive events, and VIP treatment.

15% off all downstairs furniture
Starting Monday 15th August until Thursday 25th August save 15% off lounge, dining and office furniture and also upholstery items, on top of existing offers.

Discount Code: FURN15

£50 off when you spend £250 or £100 off when you spend £400 or more
Until Sunday 14th August we have £50 off when you spend £250 or £100 off when you spend £400 or more on furniture. This is on top of existing offers and excludes Schreiber fitted bedrooms and garden furniture.

Discount Code: HB100.

15% off when you spend £300 or more
Until Tuesday 16th August we have 15% off bathrooms, kitchens and Schreiber fitted bedrooms when you spend £300 or more.

Discount Code: EX15.

More great savings from Homebase

• Up to 1/2 price selected furniture
• 1/3 off selected flooring and tiling
• 15% off when you buy 4 or more internal doors
• Up to 1/2 price selected showers
• Great range of appliances
• Up to 25% off selected pressure washers
• Up to 20% off selected lawn mowers