Time-Wasters Update

Oh NO! My computer is infected with 5 viruses, and it is unprotected and this can lead to loss of data and damage to the computer. That’s what the email message says and claims to be from “Account Support”. However, it’s from info @h781pkql.in which is an internet address in India and is complete rubbish. The message demands that I click a link to scan my computer for more problems. More likely it will scan for ways to steal from me. Not going to happen.

An email from Nutricogroup tells us that the company is shutting down and thanks us for our business. Never heard of them so cannot be a customer – that’s assuming the company actually exists which is unlikely. The purpose of the email is just to get people to click on the link to nutricocompany which no doubt leads to a malware site. Wont be clicking on that link.

A very business-like email arrives asking if we are carrying out research and development of new products. And If so then we may qualify for R&D tax breaks. It claims to be connected to HMRC but is from an eu domain name so is from a scammer. The scammer wants personal information and details but wont be getting them from us.

Phishing scam emails trying to catch people who use IONOS services are very common because millions of people do use IONOS services for accessing the Internet, website hosting, email etc. This latest one claims that an automated system has detected an unpaid invoice (number #35019835178312-0912-1) and I must click the link to login and correct this. Apparently, I only have 24 hours to complete this. I don’t have an IONOS account so it’s obviously a scam and the sender doesn’t know my name just ‘customer’ although the scammer is dumb enough to spell this as ‘cosumer’ at one point in the message. Clicking the link would take you to a fake website made to look like IONOS and the scammer wants your login and password, and your payment card details.

Some scam messages are short and simple – this latest one just says “Can you do a job with me?”. Not even a fake name added. Perhaps he or she wants us to knock over a bank with them or to steal candy from a baby. Who knows? To be ignored of course. Replying to such messages just encourages them.

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July 1, 2022

Stop Badware

There used to be a useful website at https://www.stopbadware.org/ but it disappeared in 2021.

It was a resource to educate people and companies about “badware” and worked with various organizations that try to protect against various forms of badware.

The post below tells you about what the organization stood for.

Badware.org claimed that “Our work protects people and organizations from becoming victims of viruses, spyware, scareware, and other badware”. That sounds useful.

The StopBadware project started at Harvard University and was turned into an independent nonprofit organization in 2010.

What is Badware?

Badware is software that overrides a user’s choice about how his or her computer or network connection will be used.

Some badware is specifically designed for criminal, political, and/or mischievous purposes.

These purposes might include:

stealing bank account numbers, passwords, company secrets, or other confidential information
tricking the user into buying something that they don’t need
sending junk email (spam)
sending premium text messages from a mobile device
attacking other computers to prevent them functioning properly
distributing badware to other computers

Badware is sometimes referred to as malware. It includes viruses, Trojans, rootkits, botnets, spyware, scareware, and more.

The StopBadware programme:

provides Internet users with important and timely information about badware
helps website owners, particularly individuals and small businesses, protect their sites from badware; offers resources and community support to owners of compromised sites
engages web hosts and other key service providers to help them effectively and transparently address badware websites within their zones of control
encourages companies to proactively share data and knowledge with one another; leads collaborative information-sharing efforts that create greater security for all stakeholders
conducts high-impact research on malicious websites, cybersecurity econometrics, and critical infrastructure, to name just a few

Some badware may not have malicious intentions, but still takes away the user’s control.

For example, a browser toolbar that helps you shop online more effectively but does not mention that it will send a list of everything you buy online to the company that provides the toolbar. In this case, you are unable to make an informed decision about whether to install or use this software.

Another example is when you install a piece of software, and that software installs additional software that you weren’t expecting. This can be especially troubling if the additional software does something you dislike or doesn’t uninstall when you remove the original software.

STOP BADWARE!

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June 30, 2022

How Scammers Steal Reviews on Amazon

Unscrupulous sellers find ways to get positive customer reviews from other products and integrate them into their own listings for products that may be new and hence have no reviews or be poor quality and hence not want genuine reviews.

Most customers these days will check on product reviews and if there are large numbers of positive reviews then that is a buy signal. We rely on these reviews being largely genuine – there will always a tiny number of fake or exaggerated ones but we trust that the majority are real reviews by real purchasers of the product.

Positive reviews will push a product higher in Amazon’s internal search engine and might trigger an Amazon’s Choice badge—this endorsement is given to highly rated, well-priced products available to ship immediately.

There’s a lot of money at stake as more than two million companies sell products on Amazon marketplace for more than $100 billion each year.

Amazon say they spend over $400 million per year protecting customers from fake reviews, abuse, fraud, and other forms of misconduct.

Merged Reviews

Amazon allow reviews for products that are basically the same thing but in a different size for example or perhaps just a different colour. This makes sense If you were selling a beanie hat in 10 different colours and 3 different sizes – each with its own listing. You would expect any reviews to apply to all sizes and colours.

However, scammers use the merge process to take positive reviews from one product and attach them to quite separate products by cheating the system.

e.g. Which magazine found In a posture correction brace with size variations that included a card printing machine and dish washing wands. The reviews came from one of the products but can be used to advertise all three.

If you find a product on Amazon with reviews that clearly that belong with a different product, then Tweet @Amazon with a screenshot and use the hashtag #StopReviewHijacking

If you have any experiences with these scams do let me know, by email.

June 29, 2022

Pension Wise Service

https://www.pensionwise.gov.uk

In these days of pension fraud, if you’re over 55, it is wise to assess your pension situation using government advice.

The website Pension Wise was set-up by government to provide free advice

They say they can help you if:-

you are aged 50 or over
have a personal or workplace pension
want to make sense of your options

There is plenty of advice on the site from what happens if you live abroad to taxation to the different ways you can take money from your pension pot.

There’s also advice on how to avoid the pension scammers.

If you feel the need to talk to an expert, there are free calls of up to 60 minutes that can be booked.

If you need pension advice – this website is a good start.

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June 27, 2022

United Nations Police 419 Scam

419 scams are any scam where you are promised something highly valuable but have to pay small charges to get to that valuable item. These are often carried out by Nigerians – or people claiming to be Nigerian.

Typical examples include someone claiming to have lots of gold and just needs to ship it to your address and you get to keep a big percentage or maybe lots of cash in a bank box that you just need to send in proof of identity and pay some small fees to get the box.

The scammers like to stick to their play as it has been very successful for them, but they do improvise around the central theme.

One latest variant claims to be from the United Nations Police (but uses a Gmail email account)

“We hereby inform you that the Scotland Yard Police, Interpol, federal Bureau of Investigation, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission of Nigeria and all the African crime fighters leaders have come together to stop scam/Internet fraud in Nigeria and all around west Africa. We have recovered over US $2.6 Bn from the people who we have behind bars.”

There really are assorted Police actions in progress in Nigeria to stop scammers but this one described is simply made up.

The email then gives a long list of scammer’s names and scam company names and says they are behind the non-release of your funds.

Lots more details and the statement that there is $5 million waiting for you to collect – you just need to supply some personal confidential information and pay $350 to a Doctor Richard Kelly.

I certainly won’t be replying to these scammers. Money for nothing is always a scam.

If you have any experiences with scammers, spammers or time-waster do let me know, by email.

June 26, 2022

The Diabetes Tree

This is another of the supposed magical diabetes cure scams.

It’s somewhat more dramatic than most e.g. “They were scheduled to saw off Kelsey’s leg in a matter of days”.

“Her doctors worried a coma was next”

And so on.

But the star of the story travelled to Arizona to a house he had never seen and there in the backyard was a non-descript little tree.

You can see this is written like a fairy story, but by an idiot.

The story continues “But the man soon discovered the tree was extremely rare and that people in India have used its properties for thousands of years to cure diabetes”.

In fact, India has a very high rate of diabetes so the country is not a good example of where to look for a cure for diabetes.

Finally, the scammer claims that more than 20,000 American have been cured by this tree’s bark – but also that it’s a secret.

If I wanted to keep something secret – I wouldn’t tell 20,000 people about it.

It’s all pathetic.

Never trust magical remedies and strange things found by ‘ordinary’ folks. Trust your doctor instead.

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