Black Friday brings countless deals, but the more frequently you use your credit card, the greater the chance is of being scammed. Bad actors are always looking for opportunities to steal your information.

Approximately 60% of US credit card holders have been victimized by fraud, and 45% have experienced fraud multiple times, according to Security.org. This resulted in 52 million Americans having fraudulent charges on their credit or debit cards last year, with fraudulent purchases exceeding $5 billion. 

Before you tap, swipe or input your credit card info this Friday, make sure you know how to protect your money.

Common credit card scams

If there was just one type of scam, it would be easier to fight credit card fraud. However, criminals are creative and have come up with numerous types of scams designed to grab your credit card digits. 

Gift card scams

Gift card scams can occur when scammers imitate police or even a judiciary official to scare consumers into purchasing a gift card to repay an alleged fine or penalty, often under the threat of jail time. This scam preys on the victim's fear of hefty fines or jail time -- but know that no legitimate business or government agency will ever ask for payment from a gift card. 

Another common gift card scam is draining, where a scammer alters a gift card so that they can drain the money from it. Always be sure to check for tampered packaging when you purchase a gift card. 

Fake charities

People tend to donate to charities during the holidays, so scammers have set up fake charity websites in order to steal your donations. The IRS recommends using its Tax-Exempt Organization Search tool on IRS.gov to verify that the charity you're donating to is legitimate. 

Cloned shopping sites

Scammers can sometimes create duplicate shopping sites, with nearly identical web addresses, or URLs. These phony sites victimize both the shopper and the legitimate business. To avoid doing business with a cloned site, look out for anything that doesn't look or feel right and double check the web address.

Phone scams

Many people are used to receiving shady telemarketing calls, and there's a reason they keep coming -- it's because they're effective. 

For credit cards specifically, these calls include interest rate reduction scams and calls claiming that they need your card number to correct an alleged overcharge. Always be suspicious if a company calls you and asks for your credit card information. 

If this happens to you, ask the person on the other line to confirm the company they work at, hang up and call it yourself using a number that you know to be legitimate. Many scammers will hang up on you first when you start asking these questions.  

Credit card skimmers

A credit card skimmer is a device placed on top of a credit card reader designed to clone your credit card account information. Look closely for these devices on gas pumps and on other unattended kiosks and vending machines. If something doesn't look or feel right, go elsewhere or pay in cash, if you can. 

Tips for avoiding credit card scams around the holidays

Avoiding scammers can sometimes seem like a full-time job, but it doesn't need to be time consuming. Here are a few additional tips for dodging scammers this holiday season. 

Check your credit report

Credit card scams that rack up money on one of your credit cards will quickly show up on your credit report, so check it for errors regularly.

You're entitled to a free copy of your report once a week through the website annualcreditreport.com. This is the only site authorized to give you free weekly credit reports from each of the three major consumer credit bureaus. 

Only shop with trusted, secure sites

Don't make purchases from sites that you've never heard of, especially if they look or feel fishy.

Double check the web address to ensure that it's the real name of the merchant you're trying to make a purchase with, and that it's encrypted. Encrypted pages start with https:// -- if there's no "s" after the "http", then it's not secure and may be riskier.

Use a free credit monitoring service

Many credit card issuers offer a free credit monitoring service, like Capital One's CreditWise, that will alert you when someone applies for credit in your name. Activate and pay attention to these alerts, so you can quickly identify any attempts to fraudulently open an account in your name. 

Consider identity theft protection software

Many identity theft protection services also offer credit monitoring and will notify you if your information is stolen in a data breach or if they notice fraudulent transactions in your name. These services also offer dark web scans and can make it easy to lock your credit to prevent bad actors from opening credit accounts in your name.

How your credit card could protect you from fraudulent purchases

Credit cards are one of the most secure forms of payment available. Your account is protected from fraudulent charges by the Fair Credit Billing Act. While this law will limit your liability to $50 in the event of fraud, all of the major payment networks have a $0 liability policy. So if you notice any fraudulent charges, notify your credit card issuer to have the charge reversed. 

Read more: It's Easy to Accidentally Commit 'Friendly Fraud.' How to Avoid This Serious Credit Card Mistake

What to do if you're a victim of a credit card scam

If you're the victim of a credit card scam, there are several steps you can take. First, notify your card issuer to reverse the charge and, if necessary, have your credit card re-issued with a new account number. 

If you suspect your identity has been stolen, you may wish to contact the three major consumer credit bureaus:

You can request that they freeze your credit reports, among other things. If the fraud is serious or ongoing, you can contact the police to file a report and should file the incident online with the Federal Trade Commission.