Post by Flightless on Mar 9, 2005 1:38:55 GMT -8
Some folks may have had odd emails like these:
Earn a mouth-watering commission by coming to the aid of a stranger, make money easily by working at home or head off on a dream holiday for a trifling sum – as mouth-watering as they may be, these offers found on the Web are often just a cover for fraud.
Most often relayed by unsolicited e-mail (spam), online fraud has become increasingly widespread in recent years. It can take the form of a confidence scam, such as in the case of "phising", where unsuspecting Internet users are directed towards a fake bank site used to gather their confidential personal information (such as a credit card number for example). According to the Anti-Phishing Working Group, a professional group that combats this type of fraud, "phising" incidents are increasing by 50% every month. Last July, the organization recorded 1,600 attacks directed at banks alone. What are the more common types of attack? How can they be recognized? What protection is available? Read on to find out more…
African scams – fake requests for help
You have almost certainly received a message of this kind, such is the sheer volume of e-mail containing this type of fraud. The e-mail claims to originate from the son or widow of an important African figure, often from Nigeria. The author of the message requests your help in releasing a large sum of money from his country (the figure quoted is often in the order of millions of dollars). To do this, the Internet user is invited to transfer the money into his own account in exchange for a mouth-watering commission. Before accessing the money, however, the user is asked to pay certain administrative fees and bank charges… The user never receives the promised commission of course and the affair may become even more sinister in nature if the fraudsters request the user to travel to the country in question.
Phishing: fishing for victims on the Net
For those Internet users too wary to be tricked by offers that are too good to be true, the fraudsters often resort to usurping reputable e-mail addresses. Always distributed by means of bulk spam e-mail, the phishing technique consists of making the user believe that the e-mail originates from his own bank or Internet Service Provider. For so-called "security reasons", the user is requested to confirm certain information (such as a credit card number, PIN number or even the password used to access an online service) on a phony website designed by the fraudsters. The information provided by the unsuspecting user is used, in most cases, to make online purchases.
The cyber-fraudsters know no limits
Another form of phishing has only recently come to light: taking advantage of the surge of solidarity displayed towards the victims of the Asian tsunami, certain phony donation collection websites have been set up by online swindlers. The credit card company MasterCard started alerting users in early January 2005. It is highly recommended, therefore, to only log on to websites of reputable organizations when trying to give aid to the people of South Asia.
You have won a holiday…<br>
As with the majority of online scams, this particular swindle is spread by e-mail. You receive a message informing you that have won a large prize in a draw (a competition you have certainly never even entered). And of course, certain administrative costs need to be paid first… before you can hope to access a sum of money that you will never actually see. There's nothing new about this fraud, but it continues to dupe many victims. Another version leads the user to believe that he has just won a week's holiday in the sun.
Telephone scams
In this type of fraud, the perpetrators are not trying to obtain your bank details since the scam is carried out over the phone. You receive an e-mail that confirms an order you have never actually placed. To avoid having the purchase debited from your bank account, you are asked to dial a telephone number – which just so happens to be a premium rate number. If you succumb to this type of fraud, which has been circulating since the end of October, you will be encouraged to dial a number where the call may be charged at… four euro per second! Another version of this fraud attempts to take advantage of the curiosity of users: the e-mail may promise to provide you with information about your family or even about legal action that you may be liable to. Unsurprisingly, the number you need to dial just so happens to be a premium rate number or a number based in a foreign country.
Win lots of money… by doing nothing or very little
In this case, the e-mail you receive promises you a dream job, already being enjoyed by millions in the United States from their own homes and achieved by doing nothing or almost nothing. If the reality of this dream job is in fact false, the so-called "administrative costs" the fraudsters try to solicit from you are, unfortunately, very real indeed.
Burçin Gerçek - indexel
Earn a mouth-watering commission by coming to the aid of a stranger, make money easily by working at home or head off on a dream holiday for a trifling sum – as mouth-watering as they may be, these offers found on the Web are often just a cover for fraud.
Most often relayed by unsolicited e-mail (spam), online fraud has become increasingly widespread in recent years. It can take the form of a confidence scam, such as in the case of "phising", where unsuspecting Internet users are directed towards a fake bank site used to gather their confidential personal information (such as a credit card number for example). According to the Anti-Phishing Working Group, a professional group that combats this type of fraud, "phising" incidents are increasing by 50% every month. Last July, the organization recorded 1,600 attacks directed at banks alone. What are the more common types of attack? How can they be recognized? What protection is available? Read on to find out more…
African scams – fake requests for help
You have almost certainly received a message of this kind, such is the sheer volume of e-mail containing this type of fraud. The e-mail claims to originate from the son or widow of an important African figure, often from Nigeria. The author of the message requests your help in releasing a large sum of money from his country (the figure quoted is often in the order of millions of dollars). To do this, the Internet user is invited to transfer the money into his own account in exchange for a mouth-watering commission. Before accessing the money, however, the user is asked to pay certain administrative fees and bank charges… The user never receives the promised commission of course and the affair may become even more sinister in nature if the fraudsters request the user to travel to the country in question.
Phishing: fishing for victims on the Net
For those Internet users too wary to be tricked by offers that are too good to be true, the fraudsters often resort to usurping reputable e-mail addresses. Always distributed by means of bulk spam e-mail, the phishing technique consists of making the user believe that the e-mail originates from his own bank or Internet Service Provider. For so-called "security reasons", the user is requested to confirm certain information (such as a credit card number, PIN number or even the password used to access an online service) on a phony website designed by the fraudsters. The information provided by the unsuspecting user is used, in most cases, to make online purchases.
The cyber-fraudsters know no limits
Another form of phishing has only recently come to light: taking advantage of the surge of solidarity displayed towards the victims of the Asian tsunami, certain phony donation collection websites have been set up by online swindlers. The credit card company MasterCard started alerting users in early January 2005. It is highly recommended, therefore, to only log on to websites of reputable organizations when trying to give aid to the people of South Asia.
You have won a holiday…<br>
As with the majority of online scams, this particular swindle is spread by e-mail. You receive a message informing you that have won a large prize in a draw (a competition you have certainly never even entered). And of course, certain administrative costs need to be paid first… before you can hope to access a sum of money that you will never actually see. There's nothing new about this fraud, but it continues to dupe many victims. Another version leads the user to believe that he has just won a week's holiday in the sun.
Telephone scams
In this type of fraud, the perpetrators are not trying to obtain your bank details since the scam is carried out over the phone. You receive an e-mail that confirms an order you have never actually placed. To avoid having the purchase debited from your bank account, you are asked to dial a telephone number – which just so happens to be a premium rate number. If you succumb to this type of fraud, which has been circulating since the end of October, you will be encouraged to dial a number where the call may be charged at… four euro per second! Another version of this fraud attempts to take advantage of the curiosity of users: the e-mail may promise to provide you with information about your family or even about legal action that you may be liable to. Unsurprisingly, the number you need to dial just so happens to be a premium rate number or a number based in a foreign country.
Win lots of money… by doing nothing or very little
In this case, the e-mail you receive promises you a dream job, already being enjoyed by millions in the United States from their own homes and achieved by doing nothing or almost nothing. If the reality of this dream job is in fact false, the so-called "administrative costs" the fraudsters try to solicit from you are, unfortunately, very real indeed.
Burçin Gerçek - indexel