| |
| |
|
Security Information |
|
Cyber Crooks Go Phishing
"Phishing," the latest craze among online evil-doers, has nothing to do with sitting at the end of a dock on a sunny afternoon dangling a worm to entice hungry catfish. But, if you take their bait, this new breed of online con artist will hook you, reel you in, and take you for every dollar you have... or worse. "Phishing" describes a combination of techniques used by cyber crooks to bait people into giving up sensitive personal data such as credit card numbers, social security numbers, bank account numbers, dates of birth and more. Their techniques work so well that, according to FraudWatchInternational.com, "phishing" rates as the fastest growing scam on the Internet. Here's the basic pattern for a "phishing" scam... You receive a very official email that appears to originate from a legitimate source, such as a bank, eBay, PayPal, a major retailer, or some other well known entity. In the email it tells you that something bad is about to happen unless you act quickly. Typically it tells you that your account is about to get closed, that someone appears to have stolen your identity, or even that someone opened a fraudulent account using your name. In order to help straighten everything out, you need to click a link in the email and provide some basic account information so they can verify your identity and then give you additional details so you can help get everything cleared up. Once you give up your information... it's all over but the crying! After getting your information, these cyber-bandits can empty your bank accounts, deplete your PayPal accounts, run up your credit card balances, open new credit accounts, assume your identity and much worse. An especially disturbing new variation of this scam specifically targets online business owners and affiliate marketers. In this con, the scammer's email informs you that they've just sent $1,219.43 (or a similar big but believable amount) in affiliate commissions to you via PayPal. They need you to log into your PayPal account to verify receipt of the money and then email them back to confirm you got it. Since you're so excited at the possibility of an unexpected pay day, you click the link to go to PayPal, log in, and BANG! They have your PayPal login information and can empty your account. This new "phishing" style scam works extremely well for 2 basic reasons. First, by exploiting your sense of urgency created by fear or greed, crooks get you to click the link and give them your information without thinking. Second, the scammers use a variety of cloaking and spoofing techniques to make their emails and websites appear totally legitimate, making it extremely hard to spot a fake website, especially when they've first whipped you into an emotional frenzy. The good news, however, is that you can protect yourself relatively easily against this type of cyber-crime with basic software and common sense. Most of these scams get delivered to you via Spam (unsolicited email), so a good spam blocker will cut down on many of them even making it to your inbox. If you receive an email that looks legitimate and you want to respond, Stop - Wait - Think! Verify all phone numbers with a physical phone book or online phone directory like www.Verizon.com or www.ATT.com/directory/ before calling. Look for spelling and grammatical errors that make it look like someone who doesn't speak English or your native language very well wrote it. Never click the link provided in the email, but go directly to the website by typing in the main address of the site yourself (example: www.paypal.com or www.ebay.com). Forward the email to the main email address of the website (example: support@paypal.com) or call the customer service number on the main website you typed in yourself and ask if it is in fact legitimate. Above all remember this: Your bank, credit card company, PayPal, eBay and anyone else you deal with online already knows your account number, username, password or any other account specific information. They don't need to email you for ANY reason to ask you to confirm your information -- so NEVER respond to email requests for your account or personal details. About The Author Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the co-author of an amazing new ebook that will teach you how to use fr-e articles to quickly drive thousands of targeted visitors to your website or affiliate links... Need MORE TRAFFIC to your website or affiliate links? "Turn Words Into Traffic" reveals the secrets for driving Thousands of NEW visitors to your website or affiliate links... without spending a dime on advertising! Click Here> http://www.TurnWordsIntoTraffic.com
MORE RESOURCES: Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exiting |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Wireless Network Security Working from home has its advantages, including no commute, a more flexible work schedule and fresh coffee and home-cooked meals whenever you want.But working from home while using a wireless local area network (WLAN) may lead to theft of sensitive information and hacker or virus infiltration unless proper measures are taken. Lets Talk About Antivirus Software! Nowadays more and more people are using a computer. A lot of them use it at their work place, but an increasing number of computer users have also discovered the need to have a computer at home. Password Security and Safety There is nothing more important that password security in world of technology. It is the first step to creating a safe and secure environment. Computer Viruses, Worms, and Hoaxes In recent days, I was one of the unfortunate persons to receive the "Mydoom" worm emails. Not just one, but at least forty appeared in my popserver mailbox. The Bad Guys Are Phishing For Your Personal Information Do you know what "phishing" is?No, it doesn't mean you grab a pole and head to the late to catchsome phish.The official Webopedia definition of "phishing" is as follows:The act of sending an e-mail to a user falsely claiming to be anestablished legitimate enterprise in an attempt to scam the userinto surrendering private information that will be used foridentity theft. Arming Yourself Against Spyware While clicking from site to site on the internet you are likely to land yourself on a website that downloads spyware onto your computer system. Even while using familiar or unlikely and secure web site you run the risk of being infected with unwanted spyware. An Open Letter From a So-called Stupid Someone recently told me, "You would have to be a stupid to lose your personal information." While I respectfully responded to this person in the moment, the comment has stuck with me. Spy Scanners - Don't Compromise your Privacy Spies, spyware, internet parasites are among what they are usually called. These are scouts that monitor your web activities. DOS Attacks: Instigation and Mitigation During the release of a new software product specialized to track spam, ACME SoftwareInc notice that there was not as much traffic as they hoped to receive. During furtherinvestigation, they found that they could not view their own website. How Spyware Blaster Can Protect Your Computer From Harm By browsing a web page, you could infect your computer withspy ware, ad ware, dialers and hijackers. These, unwelcomeguests, are some of the fastest growing threats on theInternet today. How Free Scripts Can Create Security Problems With the Internet entering our lives in such an explosive manner, it was inevitable that Internet security issues would follow as well. While credit card frauds are an offline security problem that has been carried over to the Internet as well, spamming and phishing are uniquely Internet security hazards. Top Five Online Scams The top five online scams on the Internet hit nearly ten million people last year according to an FBI report in December 2004. That figure doubled from 2003 to 2004 and people are continuing to fall for these email and identity theft scams. Is My PC Vulnerable on the Internet? No longer are viruses the only threat on the internet. In recent years other threats have evolved which include spyware, adware, hacking, identity theft, information theft, pop-ups and the loss of information. The One Critical Piece Of Free Software Thats Been Overlooked Can You Prevent Spyware, Worms, Trojans, Viruses,.. Spyware - Your Web Browser is the Culprit! My first experience with a spyware BHO based infection was several months ago. I had gone through all of the usual steps with the client's machine to clean it. 6 Ways To Prevent Identity Theft These six ways to prevent identity theft offer you valuable tips against the fastest growing crime in America today. In 2004, more than 9. Online Shoppers, Beware of a New Scam Beware of a New Scam Aimed at Bargain-HuntersTrying to buy something cheap is absolutely natural--and online crooks set traps for unwitting bargain-hunters. On April 6 Panda Software warned Internet users of a new particularly brazen scam aimed at stealing confidential information. Reclaim Your PC from the Internet Spies Viruses are, however, not the only malicious software programs out there. The newest addition to the evil software family is the so called Spywares and a good anti-virus program or firewall is not enough to safeguard against these clever programs. The Attack of the Advertiser - Spy Mother Spy The menacing campaigns that drive the corporate spyware and adware market is developing way out of hand. Who are these companies and how do they get away with it? They are costing computer users millions with their sneakware system of promotional crap!We have some serious problems. Email Scams - Ten Simple Steps To Avoiding Them According to the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) email scams also known as phishing attacks claim more than 2,000 victims each day from more than 75 million phishing emails that are sent each day. The APWG also claims that these email scams steal close to $1 billion a year from its victims.
|
| home | site map | contact us |