Tag Archive for: Top online scams

15 Tips to Prevent Online Scams

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Free stock photo of police, money, crime, financeScammers will do anything just to defraud people of their money. They will use different schemes just for you to give them some vital information and send your money. You have to be way ahead of these cyber perpetrators.

Here are some tips that can help you:

  • Be attentive when dealing with uninvited contact who tries to prove that they are someone you can really trust. If the deal is too inviting, it is not a good deal so it is better not to entertain it.
  • Research online – go to your preferred search engine and check the company’s name or product and use words like complaint, scam, or review. Find out if someone reported them as scammers.
  • Even if you have a caller ID – caller ID name, info and the number, a  call could still be fake. Hang up and do not rely on Caller ID!
  • Protect your personal information – protect passwords and pin numbers and do not share your personal information anywhere especially in social media.
  • Select difficult passwords – no one should be able to guess what your passwords are. A strong password compose of both lower and upper case letters, numbers or symbols. Never share your passwords to anybody.
  • Don’t pay – scammers will surely ask you to pay in advance. Report them instead!
  • Think of how you pay – When shopping online, do not wire money using Western Union or MoneyGram because if there is a problem, you can never have your money back. The same goes for Vanilla, Reloadit and MoneyPak.
  • Do not deposit your check and wire the money back – if the check is fake, you will have to repay the bank.
  • Do not make hasty decisions– Avoid purchasing things online without thinking twice. Talk to someone first. Scammers are happy when you are excited and careless on your decision. Do a search first.
  • No to robocalls – hang up once you hear a recorded sales pitch. This is illegal. Inform Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Avoid pressing anything. This could mean more phone calls.
  • Say no to free trials– never sign up for products. Find out all about the company and its cancellation policy. If you fail to do so, there could be a monthly bill.
  • Stop opening anything – it could be a text, email, or a pop-up. Check the identity of the contact first, browse a phone book, or do an online search. Do not use the contact numbers in the message.
  • Review your social media’s security settings and privacy – just to make sure if there is any suspicious behavior. If so, quickly click on spam. Protect your account and then report.
  • Be careful when you do online shopping – Only deal with online shopping service that you trust. Avoid using virtual currencies like bitcoin. Choose another transaction method just in case you want your money back.
  • Sign up with FTC to do free scam alerts at ftc.gov/scams. They will message their advice and tips in your inbox. If you run into scam, report at ftc.gov/complaint. They will look into the matter.

Stop scams from happening to you. Know about the online scams, click here to know more about it.

The Different Online Scams

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email

Scams are usually sent to your email account.

The internet is a gift to humanity.

We shop, make reservations, and pay our bills online and some of us even has online jobs. That is the advantages of technology and in addition, we can do everything, anywhere, anytime, anyplace. But be aware that when we navigate and access websites, we are also opening doors to scammers.  The perpetrators can enter our workplace, homes, even our private lives.

Scammers are brilliant. For years, they studied every details but they have something in common. So, we all should know the different online scams.

Here are some of them:

  • Phishing Emails – Deceives a victim to a website pose as a real banking or eCommerce site. It looks like your real account when you log in, but the fake site will send the scammer all the data you entered. Surprise, the scammer has wiped out everything you have – your cards, bank accounts, and even your own identity.
  • Nigerian 419 Scams (also known as Advanced Fee Fraud) – This has been around for years it came from Nigeria as the name suggests. Potential victims are contacted through social networking message, email, letter, or text message. A huge amount of money will be offered to you just to assist in transferring a personal money out of the country.
  • Killer Spam: Hitman Email – This could mean that you got an email containing a threat message. You need to pay or you die.
  • Pump and Dump Stock Scams – You will receive numerous email that has confidential information regarding certain stock. The scammer wants to inflate the price and sell the stocks in a much expensive price.
  • Greeting Card Scams – You will receive a greeting card in your email that will seem to come from family or a good friend. The scammer will take advantage of your curiosity so it’s best if you do not click the card. A booby-trapped web page will allow trojans horses to go straight to your computer system. A ransomware will infect your system and you will be asked to pay.
  • Lottery Winner Scams – You will be told that you won something like a huge amount of money. Watch out when you are asked personal information to get your prize. The scammer will tell you it is just for tax purposes and bank deposit. If you have not entered a giveaway, then, that is surely a scam.

These scams are usually sent to your email address. Be careful when opening to emails from unknown senders. You do not have to open every email you get.