Cyber Monday: here's what you need to know

TORONTO -- Black Friday was the busiest shopping day of this year and retailers are now hoping that consumers will keep spending for Cyber Monday.

The Retail Council of Canada (RCC) said retailers are trying to remain optimistic despite having to deal with supply chain issues and labour shortages.

“We have supply chain issues and we have labour challenges, so some retailers expected to have product on their shelves for Black Friday or Cyber Monday and they are still waiting for that product," Michelle Wasylyshen, spokesperson with RCC, told CTV News Toronto on Monday.

A new survey conducted by RCC found that almost half of shoppers planned to buy something on Black Friday and about one third planned to buy something on Cyber Monday.

Moreover, they said 43 per cent planned to shop on Black Friday, 35 per cent on Cyber Monday and 34 per cent on Boxing Day. The survey also found 63 per cent of shoppers plan to make their purchases in store while 37 per cent will shop online.

RCC’s survey also found that 44 per cent of shoppers are concerned about being in crowded stores.

Still, retailers believe many consumers want to get back to their pre-pandemic shopping habits.

"They want to return to their shopping traditions and that includes shopping in stores," Wasylyshen said, adding that the council has seen increased traffic in malls recently.

For anyone searching online for Cyber Monday deals, be careful if you're sent links by email or see special offers in social media.

"In many cases, fraudsters are injecting fraudulent links into our feeds,” CTV News Toronto tech analyst Carmi Levy said. ”If we click on that, from that point forward we're victims.”

Levy said to avoid oversharing personal information which can make it easier for hackers to find out more about you and to always take the time to check the website you're on to make sure it's legitimate.

“In the browser, look for the lock icon and ‘HTTPS’ — ‘S’ stands for secure — if it just says ‘HTTP’ back out of it because that is a sign it’s not a legitimate website,” Levy said.

While Black Friday and Cyber Monday have become huge shopping days, RCC said, because of supply chain issues this year, there may be constant sales up to and including Boxing Day.