Scam of the Week: This Free Gift Has a High Cost
In this week’s scam, you get an email that looks like it’s from a trusted brand, such as Costco or AAA. The email promises a free gift if you fill out a short survey and pay a small shipping fee so that the gift can be delivered to you. The email may create a sense of urgency by claiming that only a few free gifts are left. All you have to do is click a link in the email, which takes you to a website with the survey.
Scam of the Week: Spoiler Alert! This Job Isn’t Real
In this week’s scam, cybercriminals are targeting marketing professionals with a job opportunity that seems too good to be true. You receive an email that appears to be from Netflix’s HR department offering you a high-level marketing position. If you reply to this email, you will soon receive a second email that is sent from the “Netflix HR team.” This email contains a link for you to click so that you can schedule a job interview.
Scam of the Week: Smishing in the Amazon
In this week's scam, you receive an unexpected text message that looks like it’s from Amazon. The message claims that an item you bought failed a “routine quality inspection” or has been recalled. The text offers you a full refund, and you don’t even need to return the item. You only have to tap a link in the text message to get your money back.
Scam of the Week: A Fine Way to Get Scammed
In this week’s scam, you receive a text message that appears to be from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). The text states that you must pay a traffic fine by a certain date. If you don’t pay on time, your vehicle registration will be suspended, and you’ll lose your driving privileges. Some versions of the message even state that you’ll go to jail or your credit score will be affected if you don't pay.
Scam of the Week: Deepfake, Deep Trouble
In this week’s scam, cybercriminals are using artificial intelligence (AI) to try to trick you into clicking malicious links. You receive a text message or voice call from someone claiming to be a senior United States government official. They will try to establish a friendly relationship with you by sounding genuine, making the official seem trustworthy.
Scam of the Week: CrowdStrike Outage Phishing Scams
Recently, a mass IT outage caused confusion and chaos. A buggy software update deployed by the cybersecurity company CrowdStrike impacted Windows computers worldwide. Systems were affected globally, resulting in delayed flights, business closures, and more.
Scam of the Week: Don’t Medal With Olympic Scams
With the Paris Olympics beginning this week, be on the lookout for phishing emails and text messages pointing you to fake Olympics-branded websites or offering discounted merchandise or tickets. Cybercriminals will take advantage of all the excitement around the Olympics to try to steal your personal information or money.
Scam of the Week: These Prime Deals Are Too Good to Be Real
Amazon Prime Day is this week, and there are plenty of deals for you to take advantage of. However, cybercriminals are also looking to turn these deals to their advantage. In this particular scam, cybercriminals have created fake websites that look very similar to the real Amazon website.
Scam of the Week: Malware Office Suite
“You get what you pay for,” and this week’s scam is no exception. Cybercriminals are distributing a “free” pirated version of Microsoft Office across torrenting websites. The catch is that it’s actually malware. If you download and install it, the malware can begin harvesting your personal data.
Scam of the Week: These Banking Emails Are Counterfeit
In this week’s scam, cybercriminals are sending out phishing emails that claim to be from many different banking organizations. By impersonating different banks, the cybercriminals hope to trick even more people into clicking on malicious links.
Scam of the Week: Government Phishing
Cybercriminals like to manipulate people into acting on impulse because anyone can fall for this trick, even government officials. In this week’s scam, a Russian hacking group is targeting members of the Polish government with an enticing phishing email.
Scam of the Week: Unsecured Security App
In this week’s scam, cybercriminals are spreading malware by using a fake security app. They send you a text message that says a large financial transaction has just occurred using your bank account. It instructs you to call a phone number if you have not authorized the transaction. Of course, the transaction never occurred, and the cybercriminals are trying to scare you into acting impulsively.
Scam of the Week: Fake Financial File Phishing
In a recent phishing email scam, cybercriminals use vague financial terms that attempt to make you curious enough to click the attachment in the email. The subject of the email is “Remittance Summary,” and the malicious attachment is named “Payment Advice.” The body of the email only says, “Find attached payment advice for remittance.. Kindly revert.” The sender of the email appears to be legitimate, but it is actually sent from a fake sender address. If you download the PDF file, the malware will begin installing on your computer.
Scam of the Week: These Crypto Ads are a Real Drain
Have you seen online ads stating you can make tons of money with cryptocurrency? Be careful –many of these ads are scams. Social engineers want to make you think you can get rich quickly. But they are trying to trick you into providing personal information.
SCAM OF THE WEEK: An Early Tax Reminder From the IRS
The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently held the eighth annual Security Summit. The IRS concluded the summit with a reminder to stay alert during the upcoming tax season. Specifically, they warned taxpayers and tax professionals to watch for phishing and smishing scams.
SCAM OF THE WEEK: Disney+ Phishing Deal
Callback phishing is when a phishing email directs you to call a number instead of clicking on a link. These emails are often fake notifications that encourage you to make a call to correct an error. A recent scam impersonating the popular streaming service Disney+ is a great example of this tactic.
SCAM OF THE WEEK: Post-Shopping Scams
Have you finished your holiday shopping yet? Because cybercriminals are just getting started. There are thousands of shopping-themed scams this time of year, but those scams don’t end when your cart is empty. Cybercriminals continue to target shoppers with urgent phishing emails about their recent purchases.
SCAM OF THE WEEK: Unbottling the Soda Phish
A recent phishing scam discovered by INKY researchers is an example of how well-known name brands can be used to deceive unsuspecting users. This scam begins with a seemingly harmless email from an employee at PepsiCo requesting a quote to purchase something your organization is selling and includes a malicious file attachment disguised as a Request for Quote (RFQ). An RFQ is a simple way for an organization to ask different suppliers how much they would charge for a specific good or service.
SCAM OF THE WEEK: This LastPass Scam Is So Last Year
Last year, the popular password manager LastPass was the victim of a data breach. Because of this, cybercriminals have access to the names, email addresses, and phone numbers of LastPass’s customers. Since the breach, cybercriminals have been using LastPass’s data breach in various cyberattacks
Ways To Protect Your Business and Make Social Media Safe for Your Company
Social media is used by everyone these days, even hackers. Hackers often try to steal your information from social media sites.
Even though social media is a useful tool for businesses, it's important to know what security risks it poses. We'll show you how to keep your business safe and use social media in a way that doesn't hurt your business.