The great thing about the internet is that there’s room for everyone. The not-so-great part? There’s plenty of room forcybercriminalswho are hungry to get their hands on our personal information.
Fortunately,internet scamsdon’t have to be a part of your online experience. In this article, we’ll tell you about some of the most common internet schemes and how you can recognize them to keep your identity safe.
5 tips to help you recognize anonline scam
Scamsare scary, but you can prevent yourself from falling for one by knowing what to look for. Here are a few tell-tale signs that you’re dealing with ascammer.
1. They say you’ve won a huge prize
If you get a message that you’ve won a big sum of cash in asweepstakesyou don’t remember entering, it’s ascam.Scammersmay tell you that all you need to do to claim your prize is send them a small fee or give them your banking information.
When you enter a realsweepstakesor lottery, it’s generally up to you to contact the organizer to claim your prize.Sweepstakesaren’t likely to chase you down to give you money.
2. They want you to pay in a certain way
Scammerswill often ask you to pay them usinggift cards,money orders,cryptocurrency(likeBitcoin), or through a particular money transfer service.Scammersneed payments in forms that don’t give consumers protection.
Gift cardpayments, for example, are typically not reversible and hard to trace. Legitimate organizations will rarely, if ever, ask you to pay using a specific method, especiallygift cards.
When you have to make online payments, it’s a good idea to use a secure service likePayPal. Secure payment systems can have features to keep you safe, like end-to-end encryption.
3. They say it’s an emergency
Scammersmay try to make you panic by saying you owe money to a government agency and you need to pay them immediately to avoid being arrested. Or the criminal might try to tug at your heartstrings by pretending to be afamily memberin danger who needs money.
Criminals want you to pay them or give them your information quickly — before you have a chance to think about it. If someone tries to tell you to pay them immediately in atext message,phone call, or email, they’re likely ascammer.
4. They say they’re from a government organization or company
Manyscammerspretend to be part of government organizations like the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). They’ll claim you owe them money. Criminals can even use technology to make theirphone numbersappear legitimate on your caller ID.
If someone claiming to be part of a government organization contacts you, go to that organization’s official site and find an official support number or email. Contact them to verify the information in the initial message.
Scammersmay also pretend to be businesses, like your utility company. They’ll likely say something to scare you, like your gas will be turned off if you don’t pay them right away.
5. The email is littered with grammatical errors
Most legitimate organizations will thoroughly proofread any copy or information they send to consumers. Professional emails are well-written, clear, and error-free. On the other hand,scamemails will likely be full of grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors.
It might surprise you to know thatscammerswrite sloppy emails on purpose. The idea is that if the reader is attentive enough to spot the grammatical mistakes, they likely won’t fall for thescam.
8 most commononline scamsto watch out for
There are certainscamsthat criminals try repeatedly because they’ve worked on so many people. Here are a few of the mostcommon scamsyou should watch out for.
1. Phishing scams
Aphishingscamcan be a phone or emailscam. The criminal sends a message in which they pretend to represent an organization you know. It directs you to a fraud website that collects yoursensitive information, like your passwords,Social Security number(SSN), andbank accountdata. Once thescammerhas your personal information, they can use it for personal gain.
Phishing emailsmay try anything to get you to click on their fake link. They might claim to be your bank and ask you to log into your account to verify some suspicious activity. Or they could pretend to be asweepstakesand say you need to fill out a form to claim a large reward.
During thecoronaviruspandemic, new phishingscamshave emerged, withscammersclaiming to be part of various charities and nonprofits. Sites likeCharity Navigatorcan help you discern real groups from fake ones.
2. Travel insurance scams
Thesescamsalso became much more prominent during thepandemic. Let’s say you’re preparing to fly to Paris with your family. Ascammersends you a message offering you an insurance policy on any travel plans you might be making. They’ll claim the policy will compensate you if your travel plans fall through for any reason without any extra charges.
You think it might be a good idea to purchase this type of insurance. Right before leaving for your trip, you have to cancel your plans. You go to collect your insurance money only to realize the insurance company doesn’t exist.
Real travel insurance from a licensed business generally won’t cover foreseeable events (like travel advisories, government turmoil, orpandemics) unless you buy a Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) addendum for your policy.
3. Grandparent scams
Grandparentscamsprey on your instinct to protect your family. Thescammerwill call or send an email pretending to be afamily memberin some sort of emergency who needs you to wire them money. Thescammermay beg you to act right away and avoid sharing their situation with any otherfamily members.
For example, thescammermight call and say they’re your grandchild who’s been arrested in Mexico and needs money to pay bail. They’ll say they’re in danger and need you to send funds now to save them.
If you get a call or an email from an allegedfamily memberrequesting money, take the time to make sure they’re actually who they say they are. Neverwire transfermoney right away or over the phone. Ask them a question that only thefamily memberwould know and verify their story with the rest of your family.
4. Advance fee scam
You get an email from a prince. They’ve recently inherited a huge fortune from a member of their royal family. Now, the prince needs to keep their money in an Americanbank accountto keep it safe. If you let them store their money in yourbank account, you’ll be handsomely rewarded. You just need to send them a small fee to get the money.
There are several versions of thisscam, but the prince iteration is a pretty common one. If you get these types of emails, don’t respond or give out your financial information.
5. Tech support scams
Your online experience is rudely interrupted when apop-upappears telling you there’s a huge virus on your computer. You need to “act fast” and contact the supportphone numberon the screen. If you don’t, all of your important data will be erased.
When you call the number, a fake tech support worker asks you for remote access to your device to “fix” the problem. If you give thescammeraccess to your device, they may steal your personal and financial information or installmalware. Worse yet, they’ll probably charge you for it.
Thesescamscan be pretty elaborate. Ascampop-upmay even appear to be from a reputable software company. If you see this type ofpop-up, don’t respond to it. Instead, try restarting or turning off your device. If the device doesn’t start back up, search for the support number for the device manufacturer and contact them directly.
6. Formjacking and retail scams
Scammerswill often pose as popular e-commerce companies by creating fake websites. The fakewebpagesmight offer huge deals onsocial media. They’ll also likely have a URL close to the real business’s URL but slightly different.
Sometimes, a criminal is skilled enough to hack the website of a large online retailer. When ascammerinfiltrates a retailer’s website, they can redirect where the links on that site lead. This is called formjacking.
For example, you might go to an e-commerce store to buy a jacket. You find the jacket and put it in your online shopping cart. You click “check out,” and you’re taken to a form that collects yourcredit card information. What you don’t know is that the checkout form is fake. Yourcredit card numberis going directly to thescammers.
Whenever you’re redirected from a website to make a payment or enter in information, always check the URL. If the form is legitimate, it will have the same URL as the site you were on. A fake form will have a URL that’s close to but not exactly the same as the original site.
7. Scareware scams (fake antivirus)
Thesescamsare similar to tech supportscams. However, instead of urging you to speak directly with a fake tech support person, their goal is to get you to download a fakeantivirussoftware product (scareware).
You’ll see apop-upthat says your computer has a virus,malware, or some other problem. The only way to get rid of the problem is to install the security software thepop-uplinks to. You think you’re downloadingantivirussoftware that will save your computer.
What you’re actually downloading ismalicious software. There are several types ofmalware. The program might beransomwarethat locks up your information until you pay thescammersor spyware that tracks your online activity.
To avoid thisscam, never downloadantivirussoftware from apop-up. You’ll be much better off visiting the website of a reputable company, like McAfee, to downloadantivirussoftware.
8. Credit repair scams
Dealing withcredit carddebt can be extremely stressful.Scammersknow this and try to capitalize off it. They’ll send emails posing as credit experts and tell you they can help you fix your credit or relieve some of your debt. They might even claim they can hide harmful details on your credit report.
All you have to do is pay a small fee. Of course, after you pay the fee, the “credit expert” disappears without helping you out with your credit at all. Generally, legitimate debt settlement firms won’t charge you upfront. If a credit relief company charges you a fee upfront, that’s a red flag.
Before you enter into an agreement with any credit service, check out their reputation. Do an online search on the company to see what you can find. If there’s nothing about the credit repair company online, it’s probably fake.
What can you do if you get scammed online?
Admitting that you’ve fallen for anonline scamcan be embarrassing. But reporting ascammercan help stop them from taking advantage of anyone else. If you’ve been the victim of anonline scam, try contacting yourlocal policedepartment and filing a report with theFederal Trade Commission(FTC).
Several otherlaw enforcementorganizations handle different types of fraud. Here are a few examples of institutions that can help youreport scams.
- TheNational Center for Disaster Fraud(NCDS) handles fakescamsinvolvingnatural disastersand other national crises.
- TheInternet Crime Complaint Center(IC3) handlesscamsinvolvingmalware, fake websites, and fraudulent emails.
- You can report internationalscamsthrougheconsumer.gov.
- You can report Social Securityscamsthrough theOffice of the Inspector General website.
- You can reportscammerswho pretend to be theIRSthrough theTreasury Inspector General for Tax Administrationwebsite.
- You can report tax-related identity fraud to theIRS.
Discover how McAfee can keep you and your info safe online
Fraudstersshouldn’t stop you from enjoying your time online. Just by learning to spot anonline scam, you can greatly strengthen your immunity tocybercrimes.
For an even greater internet experience, you’ll want the right tools to protect yourself online. McAfee’sTotal Protectionservices can help you confidently surf the web by providing all-in-one protection for your personal info and privacy. This includesidentityprotection— which comes with 24/7 monitoring of your email addresses andbank accounts— andantivirussoftwareto help safeguard your internet connection.
Get the peace of mind that comes with McAfee having your back.
