From phishing scams
to stolen credit cards to crashing websites, crooks are out in full force on
the popular Cyber Monday online shopping day, trying to get a big score of
their own.
Online fraud on Cyber Monday is estimated to cost as much as
$8,000 per minute, according to a recent survey by the Ponemon Institute and
RSA, the security division of EMC (NYSE: EMC
) .
Here are three of the most common dangers shoppers and retailers
face.
Phishing fraud
Phishing -- an email, text message, or social media message that looks
like it's from a friend or trusted business but is instead a scam -- is a
favorite method of crooks. According to USA Today, the thieves expect as many
as 1 in 10 of us to fall for the fake message and click the links inside.
On Cyber Monday, these messages may offer special prices if you
enter your payment information on the page you're directed to. Sometimes just
clicking the link is enough to trigger an attack -- which happened recently
with phishing emails that resembled delivery confirmations from UPS (NYSE: UPS ) and FedEx
(NYSE: FDX ) .
So-called "fraud alerts" that appear to be from your
card issuer are also popular this time of year, and we're more susceptible to
them since we tend to be charging more -- American
Express (NYSE: AXP ) cardholders
were recently targeted.
What to do: Be very suspicious of links in
emails unless you're positive they are legit. If you aren't sure, call the
company directly (type its URL directly into your browser to find customer
service contact info) to verify the information.
Site swap
It's surprisingly easy to pass off a fraudulent website off as one
from a popular retailer. You may come across these fake sites through phishing
scams or while searching the Web for deals. (Hint: Don't search terms like
"Cyber Monday deals," which are rife with scams.)
The easiest way to avoid these is to go directly to your favorite
retailers' sites through your browser, and not through email or search results.
If that's not possible -- say you're looking for a hard-to-find item and don't
know which sellers to try -- then take a very close look at the link before you
click.
PC magazine's Security Watch blog recommends typing links in
unsolicited emails or messages into getlinkinfo.org, which will show you where
the link actually goes. If it shows a long list of redirects, or any URL on the
list looks suspect, you'll know it's probably fake.
What to do: Watch for the "s" --
when entering any kind of payment, the URL should start with "https"
and display a padlock icon.
Imposter apps
Fake apps are popping up more often -- even on legitimate app
stores, such as Google's (NASDAQ: GOOG )
Google Play store. No matter how vigilant Google is at removing malicious apps,
more crop up, so be on the lookout for anything at all that doesn't match up.
Help Net Security Managing Editor Zeljka Zorz recommends checking
the name of the app developer to make sure it matches. "If it's not the
same as that of the company that creates the product, it's a fake and probably
malicious," Zorz writes.
What to do: Never download an app from
anywhere other than your device's app store. Even then, as Android users have
seen, that's no guarantee of safety. Be sure to read any available reviews and
check out the developer's site as well, to make sure everything looks kosher.
There are a lot of great deals out there on Cyber Monday -- and a
lot of bad guys, too. A little vigilance can make sure your shopping score
doesn't come with a scam.
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