The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has launched its third crackdown on potentially misleading retail advertising, targeting businesses promoting Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales.

The latest sweep takes a close look at retailers advertising around the sale event, including use of discount claims, countdown timers, misleading testimonials and scarcity messaging that pressures consumers into making purchases.

The ACCC will focus on practices including advertising ‘sitewide’ or ‘storewide’ sales when in fact a number of products are excluded, extending supposed time-limited offers, and falsely claiming products are in short supply.

It will also investigate misleading price comparisons, in particular, when advertised discounts are calculated using false reference prices – those that products have either never been sold at, or at least not recently.

Also, for the first time, the ACCC will look at promotional practices across multiple channels, including retailer websites, email campaigns and social media.

The sweep will also assess how retailers’ promotional tactics have evolved and whether compliance with Australian Consumer Law has improved over the past three years.

ACCC Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe said consumers should be able to trust that advertised savings represent genuine discounts, particularly as many shoppers delay major purchases in anticipation of Black Friday and Cyber Monday bargains.

“Retailers risk ACCC enforcement action if they misrepresent the size, scope or duration of their sales,” Ms Lowe said.

She also warned businesses against relying on disclaimers or exclusions in the fine print (example above) to qualify the headline message of a promotion. She emphasised that discount claims must be accurate, clear and not misleading.

The latest investigation follows two previous Black Friday advertising sweeps in 2024 and 2025, which revealed concerning promotional practices.

Following those investigations, Michael Hill, My House and Hairhouse Warehouse Online paid penalties in June 2025. DigiDirect, James Lane and Vuly paid penalties in September 2026 over allegedly false and misleading representations about their Black Friday sales.

Consumers are also being warned to remain alert to fake online retailers during the sales period. Fraudulent shopfronts often use unusually large discounts and limited-time offers to encourage rushed purchases from shoppers, before they verify a seller’s legitimacy.

It’s a growing problem, with Scamwatch figures highlighting its scale. Buying and selling scams accounting for 58.7% of reports involving financial losses during the first nine months of 2026.

The ACCC is encouraging consumers to compare prices across retailers and over time, check product exclusions and conditions, and focus on the final price rather than promotional claims.