This week at work we had a quite interesting story from one of our customers: she had over $500 dollars stolen from her bank account. You would then think—did they hack her bank account? Well, not really. Nor did someone break into their apartment and stole their credit card. What actually happened was that she got a computer virus, known as the Zeus virus.
The Zeus virus is a type of malware that infects your computer with the purpose of stealing precious information, such as bank accounts and online purchasing passwords. Most of the time, they will keep redirecting your browser to a certain webpage which claims to know your computer is infected. This webpage might look as legit as possible, and will recommend you to either call a number, or purchase a “super legendary clean-it-all antivirus” that does not exist.
Falling for it, they called the number, which then asked for account information, asking for $20 to fix the problem. The next day, several charges had been done to the account.
There is a similar method that does not require your computer to be infected in order to make to a victim. Phishing, as it is called, is the best scam method of the 21st century. It consists of sending out email that request either personal information, bank information, or account information through offering a certain service, often impersonating big corporations and schools. These emails will often look as legit as possible to increase the change of success.
Infecting a computer is often easy, but falling for a scam is certainly not smart. Here are some things you should know to avoid falling for such a scam:
- Know if you are expecting emails from that precise corporation or school
- Usually, corporations and schools will NOT ask for your username and password, or bank account information
- Revise the recipient; if it is a random email, such as gstiles@amega.com or confessionp09@sde.com, it is surely a scam. This is the easiest way to detect a scam.
- Usually contains a very short message or claim, such as “Your package was not delivered” or “New voice mail from iMessage.”
There is no actual way to avoid spam email and phishing. If your account is a victim of such emails, your best option is to block them, or delete them as soon as you receive them (things that you can adjust on your settings).
Surfing on the web is surely dangerous, and I am positive that you want to keep your bank account and social media information as secure as possible. You must, therefore, learn proper internet usage, since there are as many dangers on the internet as there are on the streets at night.
