This year, Valentine’s Day online sales are predicted to rise, according to big-four bank FNB. Senzo Nsibande, Credit Card CEO at FNB, said during this popular period, past trends have indicated that FNB card holders spend more each year on categories such as chocolates, flowers, general gifts and jewellery. Nsibande said overall, Valentine’s Day spend in these categories increased by 11% year-on-year in 2024, and is expected to double in digit growth this year.
He further stated that in the week of Valentine’s Day, the bank saw a 60% week-on-week increase in spend on chocolates in 2023 and 54% in 2024. Spend on flowers is said to have increased by 83% in 2023 and by 91% in 2024. General gifts also noted a 10% spend increase in 2023 and 9% in 2024, while jewellery equally saw a 10% spend uptick in 2023 and 9% in 2024.
“Our data shows that Valentine’s Day drives a significant amount of card spend by consumers to celebrate and spoil their loved ones. In addition, we’re also pleased to see the transitioning split between online and in-store purchases, showcasing the convenience and safety presented by our card payment options.”
According to Nsibande, the data at their disposal shows that men spend more than women on this day, with the majority spent on restaurants and jewellery in 2024. “This is 12% more than what they had spent in 2023 for these categories, with a similar increase expected on Valentine’s Day in 2025.”
He noted that customers are adopting convenient ways to shop and pay, with security remaining a critical factor for all purchases. “We have witnessed a greater migration to online purchases than ever before, and we believe that the world-class security and convenience of offerings such as our virtual card will continue to be a preferable transactional method for customers over this time. One of the key security features on our virtual card is a dynamic card verification value (CVV) security number that changes every hour to help customers minimise the risk of fraud when shopping online,” said Nsibande.
Meanwhile, cyber security firms are also warning that cyber criminals are lurking to scam unsuspecting lovers. “As couples prepare to celebrate with flowers, love letters and carefully selected gifts, cyber criminals are setting up fake websites, offering perfect bouquets, beautiful engagement rings or even Apple gadgets,” said cyber security firm Kaspersky in a statement.
The firm said its experts have identified several scam schemes users might face while shopping for romantic gifts. “Whether you are buying jewellery, flowers, the latest consumer technology or anything else online, beware of offers that seem a little too good to be true. All that glitters is not gold.”
One such example is a fake website that closely mimics Amazon, offering customers great deals on jewellery. Kaspersky said the fraudulent scheme, aimed at stealing users’ Amazon credentials, encourages customers to enter their Amazon login and password, inadvertently compromising their account details. This results in marketplace account takeover, potentially leading to other phishing attacks or personal and banking data leaks.
Romance scams continue to be a prevalent issue
Jason Lane-Sellers, director, Fraud and Identity at LexisNexis Risk Solutions, also warned of the prevalence of romance scams especially around this time. “As more people turn to online dating and social media to meet new people, they are increasingly at risk of falling prey to romance-related schemes.
"Fraudsters are gaining access to private data or using increasingly sophisticated tactics, such as deepfake videos, to craft compelling backstories, gain trust and ultimately successfully pull off a romance scam,” said Lane-Sellers.
The Southern African Fraud Prevention Service (SAFPS) has also issued a strong warning to the public to be cautious of the fact that social media and dating apps are a focus for fraudsters and scammers who are increasingly using romance scams and social engineering to perpetrate fraud and scams.
Social engineering is the tactic of manipulating, influencing or deceiving a victim in order to gain control over a computer system, or to steal personal and financial information. It uses psychological manipulation to trick users into making security mistakes or giving away sensitive information.
“Technology is playing an increased role in the majority of the reported fraud instances. Social engineering is becoming a reality of everyday life and has dire consequences. The public needs to be aware of this growing threat,” said Nazia Karrim, head of product development at the SAFPS.
Karrim said international reports point out that in Europe, up to 3% of the general population have fallen victim to romance scams. Finnish police data from 2020 recorded 210 scams with losses totalling €6.1 million. This rose to €10.4 million in 2023.
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