- One in ten Romanians does not believe in their ability to identify online or social media scams, and the percentage is higher among women (34% vs. 26%)
- 26% of Romanian respondents in the 25-34 age group say they have been victims of scams. The percentage is higher than that recorded for the entire sample (21%)
- Six out of ten Romanians in the 18-24 age group say they learn about Black Friday offers on social media, an impressive figure that confirms the role of social platforms as the main sources of information for Gen Z.
Bucharest, November 5, 2025– A new study by Revolut and Dynata shows us how Romanians prepare for Black Friday and how they relate to online shopping and the possible dangers represented by online scams and fraud.
The study, conducted on a sample of 1,000 Romanians, highlights that 65% of respondents are “very” or “somewhat” confident in their ability to identify potential online scams, while one in ten do not feel prepared to defend themselves against them. In the case of women, the percentage of those least confident in their scam-detecting skills increases to 34%, compared to 26% for men. While GenZ (18-24 years old) and young Millennials (25-34 years old) have the highest confidence in their scam-detecting skills (80% for both categories), boomers are less confident. 48% of them responded that they do not have confidence that they could identify potential online scams.
“Data shows that although Romanians are becoming increasingly aware of online scams, confidence in their own ability to defend themselves from scams is still low. As shopping increasingly moves to social media platforms, scammers are becoming more skilled at imitating trusted brands. The best defense is caution. Always check website addresses, avoid following links to unknown sites, and pay through safe and well-known applications,” said Florina Moisei Country Manager Revolut Bank UAB Vilnius Sucursala București.
The rush for the offer of the day – in store or on the website?
The data shows that Romanians are starting to become more careful when shopping online, including from trusted websites or apps (64%) and are avoiding clicking on links in emails or social media ads (36%), checking the website URL (22%). However, some respondents are still showing too much relaxation, with 4% of them saying that they take absolutely no precautions when shopping online.
The overall sample reveals a highly balanced market. For their primary purchases, shoppers are evenly split between in-store (26%) and online (26%), indicating that both physical retail and mainstream e-commerce platforms are equally vital. Brand apps (19%) emerge as a strong third channel for dedicated shoppers.
When it comes to discovering deals, consumers equally rely on two main digital sources: paid social media ads (35%) and retailer websites (35%), confirming the need for a dual digital marketing strategy.
Gender plays a significant role in channel preference. Women show a strong bias towards the traditional experience, with 30% choosing to shop in-store, compared to just 22% of men. Conversely, men demonstrate a greater preference for shopping on e-commerce platforms (32%), compared to 20% of women.
In terms of source of offers, women are highly receptive to paid social media ads (38%), while men rely more on retailer websites (37%) and Google ads (10%). When it comes to security, men exhibit slightly more cautious behavior, showing higher rates of checking website addresses (27% vs. 16%) and actively avoiding links (39% vs. 33%) in promotional content.
How to stay safe: Revolut’s top tips to recognise online scams
- Scammers set up fake retailer websites so that they look exactly like genuine online retail stores. This is done to both steal victims’ money when they make the purchase but also to obtain personal and card data.
What to do: carefully check the website’s URL to verify that it is the real one you intend to shop with
- Some sites sell expensive items (electronics, jewellery or clothing brands) at very low prices. Sometimes shoppers will receive the item they paid for but they will be fake or other times they will receive nothing at all.
What to do: look for online reviews from other customers to verify the reliability of the retailer - Sometimes scammers use social media platforms to set up fake online stores. The stores open for a short time and then disappear after some sales are made.
What to do: do not trust social media pages/accounts recently opened and with many positive reviews, they could be fake and written just to lead people to think that they are genuine
- Fake shipping messages and phishing emails increase during busy periods like Black Friday.
What to do: track packages directly from the retailer, or the shipping company’s website, and always check the sender’s address — watch out for subtle spelling mistakes. If in doubt, never click a link!
Notes to editors:
Methodology
Study conducted by Dynata of 1,000 national representative sample of consumers in the UK in October 2025.
About Revolut
Revolut is a global fintech, helping people get more from their money. In 2015, Revolut launched in the UK offering money transfer and exchange. Today, more than 65 million customers around the world use dozens of Revolut’s innovative products to make more than a billion transactions a month.
Across our personal and business accounts, we give customers more control over their finances and connect people seamlessly across the world. www.revolut.com
