Simple Fraud Tactics Are Often the Worst

Although we often associate online fraud with complex and sophisticated scams, most individuals and businesses are at risk first and foremost from relatively simple tricks. A big reason is that these tricks are successful in part because they are simple. Simple or complex, it’s critical that your strategies to combat fraud are in place and effective.

One of the first steps is familiarizing yourself and your staff with frequently used scams. That will reduce the likelihood that someone makes a wrong move and help lead to a better understanding of how scams work.

A “Helpful” Message May Be A Threat

A frequent example is a pop-up message, an email, text or even a phone call that “alerts” the recipient to a problem that supposedly requires their immediate attention.

As you might guess, the problem is non-existent, although the message and its content can be extremely convincing. The message nearly always includes a clickable link or further instructions for the recipient to use to solve the problem. Invariably, they will be asked to enter a password or other sensitive information to fix things. What they are doing is giving that information to the scammer.

The messages may even include information about the victim’s company or other details. Although this information may seem convincing, it’s likely available on the company website or other public locations.

The faked sources for these messages may seem impressive, too. Tech support from internet providers, cell providers, hardware companies and more will come with very convincing graphics and other elements. Graphic designers know how easy these are to mimic, but for most people the scam will look like it originated from Apple, Dell, AT&T or another legitimate company. Don’t fall for it!

Simple Work Around

The easiest solution to avoid these traps is this: instead of clicking the notification’s link or following other directions, go to the website associated with the supposed alert and log in directly to check for notifications, messages or alerts there. If the message is legitimate, it will be on the website. If not, you’re likely dealing with fraud. And if you don’t do business with the company supposedly involved, then you know the alert is not valid!

For businesses, this can involve additional threats. We already noted that it’s increasingly common for scammers to have the names of company supervisors or other officers to use that info to lure an employee into revealing sensitive information. It’s also possible to trick employees into downloading a file or opening the system to malware, ransomware and the like. The lure is often something like, “…this will allow IT to fix the problem…” Needless to say, it won’t.

Some scams that are especially common for small businesses include fake checks, credit card processing and fake invoicing. Each has its unique details, but nearly all involve asking you to do something before you have everything you should.

Still More Tricks

Another example is the fake check fraud. This often involves a check written for more than the amount due when paying for a product or service. With completion of the “payment,” they’ll contact you and request sending (often by wire) the “extra” money, sometimes to a third party. Once you’ve done that, they’ll cancel payment of the original check and leave you holding the amount due.

These are just a few simple examples of today’s growing fraud, but they illustrate well the surprisingly simple tactics that scammers often use. Check with your bank, credit card company or other reliable sources to learn more and stay alert! Scammers change their tactics often but if you’re on guard you’re much less likely to become a victim.