Gaming Addiction and Shopping Therapy: 71% of Gamers Dive into Sales as Deep as Gaming

Kaspersky’s latest study showed gamers are known to be enthusiastic shoppers during sales events. The research revealed that 71% of gamers purchase as many listed items as possible during discount shopping seasons. Additionally, 74% of gamers consider these events crucial buying opportunities. 

Unsurprisingly, the most dedicated gamers are ready to wait for major sales, even for essential purchases (69%). The study also found that more than half (53%) of gamers tend to make spontaneous purchases, even if they were not originally planning.

Gamers can choose various payment methods to achieve their desired setup, including cryptocurrency. An impressive 57% of gamers are comfortable using digital currencies for online purchases and 56% for transactions in physical stores. This preference for digital currency transactions increases to two-thirds among dedicated gamers who play over 21 hours per week.

“To ensure people can do what they love without losing personal data or money, we are constantly improving our comprehensive security solutions. For example, Kaspersky Premium provides online payment and identity protection, a data leaks checker, and a superfast reliable VPN – a combo to beat cybercriminals in reality and to help gamers have an inspiring gaming and shopping experience,” shared Marina Titova, Vice-President, Consumer Product Marketing at Kaspersky.

To ensure secure online shopping, Kaspersky shares some helpful tips:

1. Type the URL into the address bar. Opening links from online store emails can have severe consequences for online security. Fraudsters may use phishing links that lead to fake websites that look similar to the original store website. Attackers may ask users to enter personal information or bank card numbers on such sites. So, whenever there is a need to open a website or an online store, it is always better to type its URL into the address bar, avoiding any links in emails. 
2. Use a temporary credit card. Some banks provide their clients with the opportunity to issue temporary credit cards. This tool will help you take advantage of the winter sales without fear of further data loss. Sometimes, banks also offer what is known as a virtual credit card. This is similar to a regular card, but a random account number is generated for each purchase, preventing hackers from reusing the number. 
3. Manage and protect your online passwords. It is well known that cybersecurity requires customers to have a unique and strong password for each of their accounts. But it is also apparent that creating and remembering dozens of complex passwords is very difficult. Therefore, password handling can be entrusted to a reliable password manager to ensure the security of online shopping.

The full report is available via this link.