Don’t Fall for This Blackmail Scam
October 24th, Tip of the Week |
Cybercriminals are always looking for ways to trick you into acting impulsively, and this scam is no exception. They obtain your personal information through data breaches and then use photos of your home accessed from Google Maps to play on your emotions. They claim that they have videos of you and other personal information that they will release if you don’t pay a ransom.
In this scam, you receive an email with an attachment containing a photo of your home and your street address. The scammers claim they know where you live and that they’ve hacked into your home computer to take videos of you using its camera. Then, they threaten to release the footage if you don’t pay them with Bitcoin immediately. The photo of your home makes it seem like they could have actual videos of you, making their scam terrifying and convincing. The catch is that the cybercriminals don’t have any videos of you in your home. They are trying to scare you into giving them your money!
If you receive a similar email, do not respond or pay the ransom. Attacks like these are designed to catch you off guard and trigger you to act impulsively.
Source: KnowBe4 Scam of the Week
How to Spot Email Phishing Scams
October 7th, Tip of the Week |
1. Be wary of emails from strangers. Be careful about opening emails from people you don’t know and be extra attentive if someone is asking you for personal information.
2. Think twice about urgent requests. Do not engage with emails from strangers urgently asking you to share personal information, especially things like bank account details, home addresses, or a credit card number.
3. Hover before you click a link. If you have any doubt about an email being from a trusted source, don’t click on links in the body. Either type the website address directly into the url bar yourself, or hover your cursor over the link to ensure the url does not link to a malicious site.
4. Ignore password resets you didn’t submit. Many password reset requests are attempts by bad actors to get you to engage and inadvertently allow access to your account. If you didn’t request a password reset, just delete the email.
Source: Google Safety and Security Blog
Tips for Spotting Phone and Text Scams
October 3rd, Tip of the Week |
1. Don’t click on links sent through texts. Links sent through texts are a popular way scammers try to trick you. Do not click on links in texts, especially from people you don’t know. Never download apps sent to you through text messages from unknown sources.
2. Don’t share temporary credentials. Two-factor verification is designed to keep you safer, so temporary passwords, links or passcodes should never be shared. No legitimate business will ever ask for you to share your two-factor verification information.
3. Avoid urgent requests from callers. Like emails, be wary of urgent callers requesting sensitive information over the phone, especially as it relates to money or personal information. On the Android Phone app, you can mark all calls from a number as spam to stop getting more calls from them and to report the spammer.
4. Listen to the warnings from built-in protections. Security features in your apps and phone are there to help warn you when something seems suspicious, sending you a notification to caution when a message sent to your phone that could be used to steal your personal information.
Source: Google Safety and Security Blog
