The Federal Trade Commission says that usually, phishing text messages and emails tell stories that will lead people into clicking on a link or opening a document in the attachment. Here are some examples of phishing attempts:
- They claim they’ve seen unusual activity or attempted log-ins on your account.
- Pretend that something is not ok with your payment information or your account.
- Claim you need to update or confirm your personal information.
- Include a false invoice.
- Ask you to make a payment by clicking on a link they give you.
- Say that you are eligible to sign up for a government refund.
- Offer you a coupon for services or free goods.
Keep in mind that you should never click on the links in emails that you haven’t verified independently. If you do so, your computer and personal information will be subject to viruses and malware.
Again, even if the sender appears legitimate – which is exactly what the con artists want you to believe – there is no reputable organization that will ever ask for your password or other sensitive personal information over the internet.
In order to identify these scams easily, remember that phishing emails are frequently riddled with typos and grammatical problems, and the sender’s email address seems to be suspect.
- Shopping scams. There are several fake websites that offer customers “amazing deals” on popular brands. These websites usually have URLs identical to those they try to copy, for example, “Amazon.net”. If you buy a product from one of these fake sites, you have all the chances to receive bogus items or nothing at all.
- Formjacking is the name of another type of retail fraud. When a legitimate retail website is hacked, customers are directed to another payment page, which is fake, where the scammer takes personal and credit card information. To avoid being a victim of this fraud, make sure you double-check that the URL on the payment page is the same as the one you used to shop. Usually, con artists might make minor changes to the URL, such as adding or removing a single letter. Don’t forget to take a thorough look at the URL before entering your payment information.
TAKEAWAY
If you want to make sure that you won’t be scammed by con artists on the Internet, make sure you double-check everything before you enter your payment details or any other personal information.
Have you ever been a victim of an Internet scam? If yes, what did you do? What do you think about online fraud? Did you find this information useful?
Don’t forget to share your thoughts with us by leaving them in the comments section down below!
