Some quarters are out to make money by duping unsuspecting individuals and the competition watchdog is urging the Australian public to be on guard as holiday-induced scams proliferate at this time of the year.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said on Monday that unscrupulous persons are out there to take advantage of the holiday rush and bleed some cash from Australians enjoying their breaks.

ACCC deputy chair Peter Kell called on the public to be alert at all times and observe caution on booking their holiday destinations as they may fall prey on scams masquerading as online services dispensing value offers that are nothing but ploys to milk money.

Kell said that people should be wary of holiday membership club offerings and web-based reservation transactions as their money could go nowhere once they were lured by some illegitimate operators.

He offered practical measures of checking the background of online establishments by obtaining their business numbers or better yet "go somewhere where you know it's a trusted travel agent, someone that you've heard of and that you know will be there if something goes wrong."

The ACCC also warned that scammers are targeting shoppers who are inclined to donate some cash to charitable institutions, with Kell advising generous Australians that instead of taking the risk of giving out to unknown entities "approach the charity of your choice, rather than responding to something out of the blue."

The consumer agency noted too that Australians need to ensure that their online transactions are not only safe but also secure as it highlighted that "the ACCC saw an increase of around 100 per cent in complaints about online shopping scams in the last year."

Kell warned that scammers abound on online advertisements and Aussies opting to scour the internet for their Christmas shopping should exercise prudence on biting to deals that are too good to be true.