Scammers pretending to be trustworthy businesses keep sending fake emails to trick people into giving important information.
According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), they have received about 11,000 cases of phishing, which caused the victims to lose about $260,000. Australians who do not realise they have been fooled are not included in the report.
While the messages of scams vary widely, the main idea is to fool people into giving sensitive information or money. Scammers today no longer use old tricks like lottery wins. Most send boring emails or pretend to be your bank, courier company, or energy retailer. Sometimes, they may pose as the police or the tax office.
Scammers trick you into paying a somewhat reasonable amount, but then ask you for other information like passwords and account details. They usually use similar tactics to sneak malware onto devices and computers. It is with hope that computer users will click on the links or open such attachments.
Tax refunds scams are expected to be common. The goal is to infect the computer or the laptop with a spyware trying to find out your password. Scammers may also use a ransomware to encrypt files and demand for payment. While antivirus software can determine these threats, many phishing scams target the trusting nature of people.
Scammers don’t just send emails in computers and laptops, but also call innocent people. You may receive an automated call from the tax office and they may require you to supply financial details. They also ask you to verify records or even payment to get your passwords and other important information.
This is why people are advised not to trust anyone who calls and asks for sensitive information. Remember that legitimate and trustworthy service providers don’t ask for money or passwords. Many scammers even ask payments in form of gift cards.
It is advisable to protect your computer and accounts at all times. Virus and spyware removal from an IT service provider is important, but computer users need to be more cautious. Businesses also need to remind employees about these types of scams.
