Scams
I am sincerely sorry if any of the Information posted is inaccurate.
What is Phishing?
Phishing E-mails normaly ask you to click a link within the e-mail that brings you to a site that may look legitimate but is actualy a scam.
Ways to Spot Phishing E-Mails
1) Look for the phrase "Please verify your account" Companies should never ask for personal information through an E-Mail.
2) Most Phishing e-mails never use your first or last name because they are sent to multiple people. So watch out for "Hello, Valued Customer"
3) Scam Artists have been known to use slightly altered URLs such as www.squido.com or www.Verification-squidoo.com as their links.
4) Phishing e-mails also sometimes make you feel it is of great importance to respond. Such as "Your Ebay account will be deactivated if not verified soon." Which may cause you to act without looking over the e-mail carefuly.
5) Lastly, If you receive an e-mail about buying an item on Ebay and you think "I never bought an item on Ebay recently" that e-mail may be a Phishing scam or perhaps a true mistake by Ebay.
The Consequences of Falling Victim To Phishing.
1) Giving your password and/or username to the scam artist for whatever business.
2) Giving your name, address, phone, and any other information about where you live.
3) Giving your credit card number or any other financial information which could lead to loss of money.
4)Your E-mail which could lead to more Phishing scam emails by other scammers. Some scammers are part of a "Scamming Community" which will constantly share private information about the people they have scammed. Also many will share you information with friends, and you personal information could spread as fast as a wild fire.
(This can be just as bad as giving your credit card number)
5) Getting multiple Trojans or any other viruses through the email if not caught by your Anti-Virus. Note: Not all Anti-Virus programs will not stop all viruses comming. I just recently switched from Norton Anti-Virus to Kaspersky and did my first full computer scan and came up with 129 undetected viruses that had slipped through Norton.
Computer Polls
Ways to prevent being scammed by Phishing
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Kaspersky (my personal choice) Norton Anti-Virus, McAfee and other Anti-Virus programs.
Lastly, Try to stay away from suspicious web sites and E-mails.
Viruses
One type of virus is Trojan Spies. Trojan spies monitor your actions on the computer and what programs you have opened and send the information to the person who created the virus. These viruses are normaly used to get financial information.
Another type of virus is the Trojan Notifiers These Trojans just notify the creator that the virus sent to you has successfully infected your computer. These Trojans are normaly sent with multiple viruses that can do more harm.
Then theres the Trojan Dropper. The Trojan Dropper installs more malware without you knowing. These Trojans are mostly used by hackers.
Rootkits are a type of virus hacker use. Rootkits try to "hide" the virus until the hacker gets access to your computer.
::Will add more in the future::
Reader Feedback
Thank you for reading my lens on Phishing Scams. If I have any information incorrect please do not hesitate to tell me =)
WebCat wrote
Fantastic site! I'm linking yours to my just started anti-scam lens. You lens goes into wonderful detail that mine just isn't designed to do. I hope you don't mind the link. Thank you for creating your lens.
And btw, Boneca, what has your comment to do with this lens? You know, advertising in odd places like chat rooms or guest books is one way to identify a scam? Legit businesses don't do that. Besides just being rude and misusing this lens for your advertising you've just tagged your site as a scam.
Posted February 06, 2009
Boneca wrote
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Posted January 13, 2009
poddys wrote
Good lens. I have seen some very clever phishing attempts that look quite genuine. I even have to question some genuine ones these days just in case... One good check is to hover the mouse over a link in the email - sometimes the link is actually an image, and when you hover you see the real link underneath - sneaky... Good lens.
Posted June 10, 2008
Computer Related Links
- Microsoft's Guide to detecting Phishing Scams
- I got most of my information from here. Very good site and helpful.
- Virus Info
- Gives Great information about almost all kinds of viruses!
