Online scams come in many different forms. If someone contacting you via messaging app asks for your personal or financial details, consider it a red flag and report it to the Action Fraud number.
Advance-fee scams
As fraudsters continue to find new ways to gain your trust and separate you from your money, it’s important to remain alert and educated. If you are tricked into paying upfront fees to receive goods and services which never materialize, or if you are falsely told that you’ve won something, advance-fee schemes can have a devastating financial impact.
These scams, also known as “419 Fraud,” named for the section of the Nigerian criminal code dealing with fraud, promise you a sum of money or significant benefit in exchange for a small up-front fee. This fee is usually a wire transfer into an overseas account. The promised funds or benefits do not materialize.
A common advance fee scam involves a company that promises to assist you in securing a loan or an investment. This can be done by using fake websites and companies, or even impersonating legitimate business leaders. The criminal then demands a fee. Usually, this is in the form wire transfers to an offshore bank account. This can be tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. Once the criminal has received the fee, they will stop communicating with the victim and disappear with the money.
There are many other types of advance-fee scams, including online job listings, lottery scams, and property rental scams. Criminals may also impersonate law-enforcement or the IRS and claim that you owe money in taxes or fines. In some cases, the scammers will ask for personal details, such as your passwords to online accounts. This could lead to identity theft.
Always be suspicious about any business that demands an upfront fee to provide a service. If you are ever tempted by an advance-fee fraud, use the free Get Safe Online site checker, or Bitdefender Scamio, to instantly check the validity of any link or text, or instant message, QR Code, email or phone number. Remember that no legit lender will ever demand a fee before considering your loan application, and any landlord who asks for an upfront payment is likely a scammer. No legitimate employer or company will ask you to pay money before an interview.
Fraud and theft of cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrency may be a relatively new way to pay for goods and services, but scams that involve it are as old as the internet itself. Criminals take advantage of the public nature of crypto transactions to steal money or credentials used to access cryptocurrency. This includes scams that impersonate trusted entities, such as government agencies or credit card companies. This includes schemes such as ransomware attacks in which criminals encrypt data or information on the victim’s device, and then demand payment for the decryption keys.
Using imposter platforms or websites to trick crypto users, phishers will often trick them into providing their private wallet key, seed phrases and sensitive information. Once criminals have these data, they are able to steal the victim’s crypto or sell the keys.
Despite the hype surrounding cryptocurrency, investors need to be aware that digital currency is still highly volatile and not regulated. They can lose value very quickly, and you may not be able to recover your money if you invest.
Scammers often target members of a community, such as those who are part of a specific culture, religion or ethnic group, in order to gain their trust. They then exploit this relationship to lure victims into investing in a cryptocurrency scam. This can be a rug pulling scam in which the scammers withdraw their funds and leave victims with worthless property.
Another type involves a “blackmailing scheme” in which criminals threaten the victim with publishing embarrassing or compromising data about them unless he or she shares their private keys. This type of scam is illegal extortion and should be reported to a law enforcement agency.
Also, keep in mind that cryptocurrencies offer unique security features such as private key and blockchains. Doing your research is essential before investing in a project. Never enter secure information on a public network. Never use a third party cryptocurrency app or website to login to your account. This can allow scammers access to your private keys and other necessary information to access your wallet.
Jobs and employment scams
Work-from-home scams and fake employment opportunities have become more commonplace as cyber criminals target job applicants looking for money or personal information. They can use different tools to make it look more authentic, such as voice modulation technology and deepfake software that creates realistic recordings of people. These scams target people who have applied for jobs online or posted a resume on websites like LinkedIn.
These scams usually involve unscrupulous individuals posing as recruiters or employers to trick job seekers into paying upfront fees to apply for positions that do not exist. They often request sensitive information including social security numbers and banking deposit information, which can then be used to commit identity theft or launder funds.
These scams are aimed at people who need a job for money to pay bills and provide for their family. This includes people in dire economic situations, unemployed persons, or those who want an additional income by working from home or remotely. These scammers can also be students, recent grads, or immigrants unfamiliar with standard recruitment and employment laws.
Scammers may use a number of tactics to deceive potential victims. These include fake email addresses and telephone numbers, phony websites that mimic genuine ones, official looking documents such as tax forms and offer letters, and other tools. They may also pose as interviewers, who are convincing and believable. They can convince victims to act quickly because of the need for a quick turnaround, such as the need to start work immediately or provide a bank account number.
One of the biggest warning signs for a scam is being asked to pay for equipment upfront or for start-up costs. This is a clear sign that the job is not legitimate and is a way of stealing your money or your information. Never agree to wire money from your account to another. This is an old money transfer trick used by thieves to quickly move large amounts of money from your account to another’s.
Identity theft
In the event that someone steals an identity, they may commit a number of online scams under your name. They often only need your date of birth to open credit cards, loans, and accounts in their name. They can also rack-up debts, claim government benefits that are owed to them, apply for jobs, university/college, and file tax returns in your name.
Whether they hack into insurance, hospital or government databases, identity thieves can collect a wealth of your personal information to impersonate you. They can also use phishing attacks, vishing attacks, and smishing to get your passwords and bank account numbers. Identity theft can be detected by unfamiliar charges on your card, a decrease in your score, or being denied credit cards and other services. It can take months or years to resolve and can result in financial loss, stress and damage to your reputation.
Criminals can also steal information from you by using software that guesses your passwords or by accessing the information you’ve shared on social media. They can then use that data to make calls, send phishing emails or smishing attacks, steal your money and access your digital footprint.
Cybercriminals will also try to convince you that they need money sent via Western Union, Money Gram or other services. They will say they are in jail or that there is a warrant out for their arrest and need your help to pay fees and fines. They will tell you that the money should be sent to a Green Dot Money Pak, or other pre-paid cards.
It is possible to reduce your risk of a successful attack by avoiding suspicious websites and attachments in emails. If you click on something suspicious it could secretly install malware on your device, spy on your activity or even lock your device until you pay ransom. Keep your anti-virus software, spyware, and other computer security programs up to date. Never share your passwords. Sign up for Aura, a service that offers both identity protection and Dark Web monitoring.
