Most of us are familiar with those annoying alarming pop ups that come up telling us something is wrong with our computer or that we have a virus and to call “this” number for help. Because we all know this old trick, cyber criminals have come up with even more ways to try and fool us.
Have you ever accidentally mistyped the name of a website and ended up on a real website anyway? This is probably the easiest ones cyber criminals rely on since it is so easy for all of us to make this mistake. Here’s how it works:
You’re trying to contact the Geek Squad from Best Buy and visit their site by typing, "www.betsbuy.com."See, You went to betsbuy instead of bestbuy and landed on a site owned and made to look like the real site by cyber criminals. They have a support number for Geek Squad but it’s not really going to Geek Squad. It’s going to a cyber criminal ready to offer you fake support. All you need to do is give him access to your computer and a credit card!
Search engines are our friends. Billions of us use them every day to quickly find just about everything. Criminals are relying on this too and they are waiting for us!
You search for tech support and a ton of options are at your fingertips. You don't have time to go through all of them so you click on the one of the first few you see. Cyber criminals know this and market these listings to show up first in search engines. Then, they just sit by the phone and wait for the call…..from you. All they need is remote access to your computer and your credit card information to fix it for a fee. Not only do they have access to your money, they have access to anything on your computer and free range to add whatever files they want as well….like viruses….or spyware. Scary stuff!
It is way too easy for scammers to add a legitimate looking business listing on Google maps. They’ll use the real location and website but will use a phone number that is fake. I’m pretty sure you know what happens after this!
Though Google typically verifies if a business is legitimate by mailing a postcard, calling, or emailing a numerical code to enter into a Google website, the system is easy enough for scammers to bypass with fake addresses and phone numbers.
Yes, the cyber criminals are here too. Why? Because that’s where WE are! Similar to spam texts and emails, they’ll send you a link or phone number to call to get tech support help.
They call YOU! - Now that pretty much most of the population has cell phones vs. landlines, the criminals have begun targeting you via a phone call. Just because your number may not be published, doesn’t mean you won’t get a call. These criminals have auto dialers that dial numbers at random and people are on standby waiting for anyone to answer. When you do, they claim they are from “The Apple Care Team” and they received an alert that your cell phone or computer is infected. They offer to help and if you take them up on it, they got you.
Extensions are made to make our browsing easier. There’s some that track spending and offer discounts, grammar helpers, and now....real fake browser extensions. They can offer tech support at the click of a button or download malicious software when you install them. Either way, verify the publisher of any extensions you download and make sure they come from the Google Web Extension or Safari stores.
Oh, how the scammers love to scam, let us count the ways (and keep counting)...The important part is making sure you have the cyber security awareness necessary so that you can use your knowledge to your advantage to prevent these scams. (and save your hard earned cash)