Free Cheese: Top 6 Cheats on the Internet

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The most interesting fraudulent schemes in one post.

When it comes to online fraud, one of the most useful protection tools is information. Therefore, we regularly tell you about the new dangers of the digital world that our experts are discovering. Today we propose to recall the brightest scams of recent times.

Incoming transfer from a mysterious stranger​

Have you received an unexpected translation from a stranger? It could be a mistake, a gift from a secret admirer ... or a scam. While you are unsuccessfully trying to remember who Mikhail M. is, he is already calling you himself and tearfully asking you to return the money - they say, he sealed himself in the phone number when sending, who does not happen to. At the same time, he asks to send the money not to where the transfer came from, but to another account or phone number.

The catch is this: the transfer was made from a stolen card. Its rightful owner will almost certainly complain to the bank, and after the proceedings, the transaction will most likely be canceled. That is, the money will be returned to the account of the owner of the stolen card, and will simply disappear from your account. But your own transfer, made voluntarily, will become the prey of scammers.

What if you receive a notification about a sudden transfer? Do not give in to the requests of scammers and do not send funds to them. Block the sender's number and report the incident to the bank's security service. By the way, it is better not to spend the funds received - as noted above, they can be written off at any time.

Compensation for data leakage from a non-existent organization​

Data leaks of millions of users have long been a recurring news item. And in the past couple of years, very often in this news, there have also been multibillion-dollar fines that the authorities impose on companies for massive leaks. Therefore, many users may not suspect a trick if someone promises them compensation for a possible leak of their data.

They receive such an offer from the Personal Data Protection Fund, created by the American Trade Commission. It sounds solid, but in fact there is no foundation or commission with such names.

All that is required to receive a payment of a couple of thousand dollars is an American Social Security Number (SSN). There's no such thing? Not a problem, you can buy a temporary one right on the same website - for only $ 9 or more. Of course, after such an acquisition, the victim will indeed receive a notification from the bank, but not at all about the receipt of compensation.

Fake theater tickets​

It is much more convenient to buy tickets to a theater, museum or concert online. But searches for the right site can lead to both the official page of the organization and the resource of resellers or scammers. And it often looks quite believable: the design is similar, the pages themselves are in the top of search results. In general, an inexperienced or hurrying user may not immediately discern that the site is fake.

Moreover, if resellers really sell tickets, albeit at exorbitant prices, then the goal of the real criminals is to get payment information from victims and write off as much money as possible. In order to accurately get to the event and not overpay, when buying tickets, we do not recommend clicking on banners and advertising links in the top lines of the search results: look for the official page of the event or institution where it takes place.

"Official drivers" at BlaBlaCar​

BlaBlaCar users can sometimes come across scammers who introduce themselves as "official drivers" and offer passengers to pay for the trip in advance through a certain website. The need for prepayment is explained in different ways: either by the rules of the company, or by some kind of cashback or bonuses for passengers.

Of course, the site that offers to prepay the trip is fraudulent. When you click on a link with a suspicious address such as blablacar.host, you will first be asked to enter your personal data, and then the payment card details. And the scammer, of course, will stop responding to messages.

On the BlaBlaCar support website, passengers are urged not to pay for trips on third-party resources and to report drivers that require prepayment.

Deceiving Crypto Investors​

The sharp rise in cryptocurrency rates in recent years has attracted the attention of many people. For some, greed prevails over caution, making them ideal victims of scammers. Those, of course, have already adapted to the new trend and have been hunting for crypto investors and cryptocurrency miners for a long time, constantly inventing new schemes.

For example, criminals send messages to Discord users about winning a large sum of tokens or about a "helicopter money" promotion. To pick up gifts, you just need to pay a small commission or make a deposit to register on a crypto exchange (fake, of course). And so that the victims do not have doubts about the reality of what is happening, the attackers create whole portals with fake news, where their actions are mentioned.

Another option for divorce is a fraudulent offer to participate in the ICO, that is, in the initial placement of a promising new currency. Having received money from inexperienced crypto investors, the scammers suggest that they wait three hours while the transaction allegedly goes through the approval of the blockchain network. Naturally, victims will not see any tokens - neither after 3 hours, nor after 30 days.

Another scheme is used by scammers using Lightshot, a public service for sharing screenshots. Attackers post on it supposedly accidentally taken pictures with logins and passwords of accounts on cryptocurrency exchanges and literally catch live bait those who want to take advantage of someone else's frivolity. After authorization using the details from the screenshot, a greedy user enters an account on a fake exchange and sees a large amount on the account. True, to withdraw it, you need to pay a commission ... What happens then, you guessed it?

A separate type of cryptocurrency fraud is the "sale" of mining equipment, which is so scarce that official suppliers no longer have it available. Potential victims receive an email notification as if they were mentioned in a Google Doc by a well-known mining farm manufacturer. The file itself contains a notification about the start of sales and a link that leads to a fake, but very convincing page of the online store. Here users are asked to register, enter a delivery address and pay for the order. The scarce farm, of course, never comes to the buyer, and the seller dissolves with a lot of money.

VAT refund to individuals​

It all starts with the fact that a letter from the Google Docs service falls into the mailbox, and in it there is a link to a notice of due payment in connection with VAT compensation. By clicking on it, the user will be taken to a rather convincing-looking site of the "Single Compensation Center for the Return of Unpaid Funds", richly decorated with state symbols. There, the victim is offered to chat with a lawyer who will help arrange all the paperwork for payment.

In fact, a "lawyer" is a bot, which, in the process of a rather plausible-seemingly scripted "conversation", first offers to fill out a questionnaire, and then asks to pay for "legal services". Thus, the criminals may have at least the user's personal information, and at the most, their money.

How to protect yourself from online scams​

In order not to lose your hard-earned money, keep a cool head, read our reviews of current fraudulent schemes, take timely measures to protect against them and try to follow the rules of safe online behavior:

• Do not follow links in emails or messages from unknown senders.
• Check the details: URL typos, strange domain zones, and text errors are all telltale signs of dangerous pages.
• Do not enter personal data - and especially card details - on sites that have raised even the slightest doubt.
• Do not trust messages about gifts and sudden winnings - especially if you have not participated in the giveaways.
• Use reliable solution protected from online fraud and phishing.

A source

 

[НСК-СБ]

Thank you, I wonder if I didn't know something!

 

[Alexander Konovalenko.]

Thanks for the useful information.

 

[Частный детектив. Армения. Ереван.]

The list of all these schemes is huge and unique. Let's know!

 

[David Mamedov]

Are these new schemes? This is the first time I hear and see such schemes.

 

[alexsey1417]

Deceiving Crypto Investors

something new.

 

[Детективное агентство Израиль.]

Interesting and unique schemes. Thanks to the author for this interesting article.

 

[Детективное агентство Одесса]

Interesting and unique schemes. Thanks to the author for this interesting article.

Totally agree with you.

 

[Частный детектив Азербайджан]

The methods are really interesting! Thanks for the post!

 

[Частный детектив. Москва.]

These divorces right now, not only in the internet.