LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The National Retail Federation predicts that over Thanksgiving more than 180 million Americans went shopping in-store and online. And the holiday shopping deals continue today with Cyber Monday.

The NRF warns consumers to be cautious during this time. 

The organization is expecting 57% of shoppers to find holiday gifts online. And no matter how great the deals seem to be, cyber security share what to be on the lookout for this time of year. They say time pressure can be a key tactic for scammers.

You could see a countdown clock. Or an ad could say that you have to buy now to get the deal. And if that deal seems a little too cheap, it could be a fake.

“That’s how they hook you, because you feel the urgency to do something now, now, now. Slow your decision making down,” said TeamLogicIT Louisville President Paul Cox.    

The group says that this is a prime time for attacks because hackers know shoppers are in a hurry. They say to be cautious when using links sent to your email and to go directly to the shopping site instead.

You could be sent a link that looks like one of your favorite shopping sites, but isn’t. And they say you can help protect yourself shopping by using a credit card.

“Credit cards have a lot more protection than a debit card does…. Some credit card companies will let you use a virtual card number. So that’s just a onetime use credit card number. By doing that, if someone were to try to use that card number, It’s not going to work for any other places they might try to use that card,” said CEO of Z-JAK Technologies Jeff Chandler.

Experts also say to keep an eye on bank statements and report fraud to your bank and the police if needed.