Fake websites are tricking people into giving up info – NBC Boston
Not everything online is as it appears — scammers are using fake websites to trick consumers.
Online phishing scams are becoming harder to detect, with scammers impersonating popular websites, but there are some warning signs to look out for to prevent your personal information from being stolen.
Miguel Angulo, a cybersecurity engineer at Checkpoint, says some cyberattackers are targeting users of a music streaming service.
“They receive an email thinking that it’s coming from Spotify, that they have to correct something, they click on that link, it will take them to a website that looks like Spotify, has the same color, the same logo, fonts, people enter the information, and then this is how they grab that information and steal that information for malicious purposes,” Angulo said.
The FBI is warning of a new scam targeting iPhone and Android users in which scammers impersonate law enforcement officials demand money or information related to a supposed crime. And there’s more.
Spotify’s support page says the company will never ask for your personal information over email, such as payment info or Social Security number.
Angulo says a red flag to look for is an urgent call for action, because scammers are using the risk of losing something you value to make money.
“By having your information, your credit card information, your name, they can make loans, buy gift cards, they can do a lot of things under your name, and the problem is if you don’t have proof that you didn’t do all those things, you’re going to have a hard time proving that you didn’t do those purchases,” said Angulo.
If you receive an urgent message about a service you use or a delivery you did not order, Angulo recommends not engaging with those messages. Instead, check your account through the official company website or app you normally use to log in.
Scammers are increasingly targeting young people aged 18-24, the Better Business Bureau says. Here are their tips on how to help them protect their money and personal information.
Other ways to spot potential scams is to check the sender to confirm the message was sent by an official account and look for errors in the spelling or unusual characters, such as a zero instead of the letter “O” in the company name.
The Better Business Bureau also recommends using a fake website checker, such as Google’s Safe Browsing tool, to help you decide whether a website is safe to visit.
If you have interacted with suspicious emails or websites, he suggests resetting your password for the affected account and any other accounts that may use the same password, sign up for two factor authentication for extra security on your accounts, and contact your bank if you think your financial details have been compromised.