Cybercriminals intensified attacks on consumers throughout 2025, using seasonal shopping periods, gaming platforms and popular entertainment services to distribute phishing pages and fraudulent promotions, according to new data from Kaspersky.
The findings show a broad escalation in threat activity across the digital ecosystem, with attackers targeting online shoppers, gamers and users of major streaming platforms.
Kaspersky Security Network (KSN) recorded 6,394,854 phishing attempts between January and October 2025, impersonating online stores, banks and payment systems.
Of these, 48.2 per cent were directed at online shoppers. Over the same period, the company identified more than 20m attempted attacks on gaming platforms, including 18.56m abusing Discord.
Black Friday remained a significant driver of fraudulent campaigns. In the first two weeks of November, Kaspersky detected 146,535 spam emails referencing seasonal sales, including 2,572 tied to Single’s Day promotions.
Many of these reused templates from previous years, imitating retailers such as Amazon, Walmart and Alibaba, and offering early-access discounts that redirected users to fraudulent pages.
Phishing campaigns also targeted entertainment platforms. In 2025, Kaspersky identified 801,148 Netflix-themed attempts and 576,873 Spotify-related attempts.
Cybercriminals target gamers and shoppers says Kaspersky
Threat activity extended well beyond e-commerce. Kaspersky detected 2,054,336 phishing attempts impersonating platforms such as Steam, PlayStation and Xbox.
Malware disguised as gaming software saw substantial activity, with 20,188,897 attempted infections recorded in 2025. Discord accounted for 18,556,566 detections, more than 14 times higher than in 2024.
“This year’s data shows that attackers increasingly operate across the full digital ecosystem,” said Olga Altukhova, Senior Web Content Analyst at Kaspersky.
“They follow user activity across shopping platforms, gaming services, streaming apps, and communication tools, adapting their methods to blend into familiar environments. For consumers, this makes consistent vigilance and basic security hygiene essential, especially during periods of heightened online activity.”
