Tips for Preventing Suspicious Returns and Return Fraud During the Holiday Period
This holiday season, prevent return fraud by spotting patterns, training support teams, and using Redo & Yofi’s tools to protect
Last night, the legendary Sean Williams from Obsessive Sneakers Disorder joined us, and we counted down our 22 Top Botted Products of 2022! If you were unable to join live, check out the recording and our summary of our favorite products:
2. A Ma Maniere x Jordan 4: was an iconic release, as it needed to be released several times because of bots. The original release was swarmed by bots in seconds and created a Twitter storm. It was eventually successfully re-released but was one of the hottest pairs of 2022.
3. Cheez-It x Pandora: released a collaboration with Pandora, where they aged these boxes of Cheez-its to hip-hop music for 6 months. It apparently strengthens the taste and smell, but it seems a little suspect. A box of Cheez-its and a 90-day trial to Pandora isn't a bad deal…
4. Parmesan Cheese: the entire Parmigiano Consortium is under attack from cheese markers, not from the region. They have begun implementing fraud trackers to fight against fraud.
5. Tampoons: this shortage is not because Amy Schumer was featured in Tampax's marketing. Bad actors know women will pay beyond MSRP to get feminine products — an essential life necessity. Discord Groups are actively discussing how to arbitrage tampons by using HSA/FSA to get them for free, and it's an easy, low-risk flip. The newly adjusted cost of tampons is double the lifetime spent per menstruating individual.
6. Baby Formula: we already know this once, but since we no longer have the choice over our body, how can we A) afford formula and B) have enough formula in stock? Since, in many states, we no longer have the choice after 6-weeks, should the states start to pay for the formula? We have to keep a child but cannot even keep formula on the shelves — it seems logical. As you can see, formula sales jumped 24% in late May as it was a quick and easy flip for bad actors.
7. Twitter: bots and fake accounts have been a huge issue on Twitter for many years now, as digital catfishing is easier than ever. Some accounts are obvious and easy to spot, while others are difficult.
8. Fortnight: one of the world's most-played games has bots, which is quite common for players. Fortnite has bots in the battle royal and sometimes winning, leading to upset users.
9. Solana: NFTs, like sneakers or collectibles, typically would appreciate after the initial drop. Botters expanded their market to Web3, and the craziness of NFTs made botting extremely profitable. Magic Eden and the Solana were a prime targets, as there were minimal gas fees compared to Etherum.
10. Taylor Swift: literally, sold out in seconds, dominated the media, and the DOJ opened up an investigation on Ticketmaster.
11. Orange Chicken & Panda Express: some genius, likely a college student tired of dining hall food, has automated the Panda Express free entry survey. It autofills the survey, and boom, within seconds, they have a free entry of orange chicken.
It was a wild year for bots, as they targeted everything from Orange Chicken to Travis Scotts! We are just scratching the surface, and join us, next Wednesday, February 1st, at 7:00 PM EST, as we go live again for Part 2!
See you all next week!