
So what can you do to help keep your passwords and accounts secure? When it comes to phishing, awareness is often the best defense. With that in mind, we’ve put together a guide to help you navigate some of the common tricks and scams to watch out for during these trying times.
CDC Alerts
If you receive an email claiming to be from the CDC or WHO, you should be careful. It is most likely a scam! These messages often contain links claiming to list coronavirus cases in your area along with an urgent request to review those cases and see if you were in contact with anyone affected. The links may look legitimate on the surface. However, hovering a mouse pointer over the link and examining the actual target underneath reveals that it actually points somewhere more nefarious.
Health Advice
Phishers have been sending many scam emails purporting to offer important health advice related to the pandemic. These often appear to come from a specialist, doctor, or expert of some kind. These emails may contain a link or even an infected attachment. If you receive one of these messages, do not open any attachments or follow the links. Delete the email immediately. If you feel uncertain about your health, it is always best to contact your own doctor directly.
Workplace Policy Updates
You may receive occasional updates from your employer while working from home. This is normal and expected, but if you receive one of these notices, review it carefully before following any links or downloading any attachments. Cybercriminals have been sending highly targeted “Policy Update” messages appearing to come from your employer. These messages appear to link to an updated company wide policy due to the pandemic. Always double check the link by hovering your mouse over the text and checking where it really goes. If you are unsure, reach out to your employer directly and ask whether or not the message came from them.
Charitable Appeals
Many scammers are exploiting people’s best intentions by requesting financial support to help victims of the virus and front-line workers. Although these types of emails may not always be phishing scams, the charities they fund are usually illegitimate. Rather than helping to fund relief efforts, the money instead goes straight into the scammer’s bank account. Always do your research before donating to any charity. If you receive a charitable appeal via email, it is most likely fake.
SMS Recovery Hack
You may receive an email or SMS from someone claiming to be your employer or email provider. The attacker typically claims that someone breached your account and they need you to forward a forthcoming SMS code to restore it. The attacker then initiates an account recovery process which automatically sends out an SMS code to the account owner’s phone. If you unwittingly forward that code to the attacker, they will be able to take over your account.
These attacks have become very popular lately and have seen widespread success. There is even a variation of this scheme affecting WhatsApp users. To ensure this doesn’t happen to you, never forward any account codes to someone else. Your email provider should never require this information. If your employer legitimately needs it to rescue your account, contact them directly over the phone or video conference to ensure you know exactly where you are sending it.
Smudged Screen
Since touch devices have become the norm, a new type of attack targets these devices by simulating a smudge, hair, or piece of dust on the screen. Many people are already educated about the dangers inherent with clicking unknown links in an email, but wiping smudges from their touch screen is almost a reflex. However, if the smudge is actually a disguised link, that reflexive swipe may be detected as a tap. If you’re using a touch device, it’s always a good idea to close your email and browser before cleaning the screen.
Fake Ads
Scammers have been placing ads around the web and over email claiming to offer cures and treatments for the virus. Norton Security reports that the websites these ads lead to sometimes contain malware. Even in the best case scenario, the products and services they offer are useless.
How to Avoid Phishing Scams
Now that you are aware of some of the more malicious phishing scams going around right now, here are some general practices that will help protect you and your accounts from these threats:
- Avoid opening unsolicited email.
- Hover your mouse pointer over links to see where they really lead.
- Do not download attachments from any email unless it was something you were expecting to receive and you are certain of where it came from.
- Do not supply personal information to anyone via email.
- Watch out for sloppy spelling and grammar. Although this is not always a guarantee (they get more convincing all the time), poor grammar and spelling usually indicates the email is coming from a fake source.
- Be wary of urgency. Emails that try to create a sense of urgency are almost certainly scams.
- Stay calm. People can be more easily manipulated when they are in a state of panic. Try not to fall victim to fear-inducing emails or messages. This is a tactic used by social engineers to bypass your natural defenses. Instead, keep a steady hand and delete such emails.
Subscribe To Our E-Newsletter
Recent Articles
- The Great Phishing Scamdemic
Have you been noticing an abundance of suspicious looking emails flooding y…
- Serious Risks to Consider When Socializing Distantly
In today’s crazy world of staying home instead of visiting friends, we’ve a…
- Ten Tips on How to be Successful While Working From Home Dur
As a web developer of over 15 years, I’ve spent a lot of time working remot…
Categories
Recommended Posts
- Facebook Password Reset Scam!
- Calendar
- Why Is It Important To Know Who Owns Your Representative? One Example: Glass-Steagall
- Do I Need Alignable?
- There’s an App for Labor Organization
- Social Media After Death
- Why is the website broken only for me?
- Password Reset
- Help, My Google Maps are Broken!
- Technology for Christmas
Upcoming Events
Social Media
- Tech that died in 2020 We've been busy helping clients with Flash workarounds for training software. What tech are you going to mourn in #2021?
- How to recycle your old phone, laptop, TV and batteries for free A win for those with resolutions to declutter or be nice to the environment this year. I'd never heard of Cell Phones For Soldiers before!
- We can’t thank you enough for all of your support this year. From our entire team, we want to wish you a happy, healthy, and prosperous new year! #welcome2021goodbye2020 https://t.co/yEYCRBAK4d
-
-
- I'm not just scrolling to the bottom and hitting AGREE anymore.
.
.
.
#2021 #ReadyorNot #HereWeGo #happynewyear2021 -
-
-
-
- The year is 1997.
You: *struggling to write a letter*
Clippy: Would you like some assistance with that? -
-
-
-
-
-
- The Jetsons predicted 2020.. just waiting on the flying cars. No doubt our hero @elonmusk will make that come true too. 🚀 #jetsons #telework #onlineclasses #telemedicine #videocalls #tesla https://t.co/0T1s3MgaMx
- @GovWhitmer Why aren't #Michigan groomers allowed to open if they are offering curbside service? #Ohio and #Indiana allow it. Asking for a client (and our staff).
- The most popular pickup line for Web Developers: "Can I clear your cache?" https://t.co/pIUAEr23nX
-
- Have you considered the risks of socializing distantly? 💬🗨️⚠️ https://t.co/xzOTfGBJIc
#SocialDistancing #SocialMedia - If #IRS doesn’t have your direct deposit info, a check will be mailed to your address on file. For your #TaxSecurity, do NOT provide your direct deposit or banking information for others to input on your behalf into the IRS...
- Chinese Government Holds Back Everyone’s Internet Freedom: A strong example of the problems this world... Chinese Government Holds Back Everyone’s Internet Freedom: A strong example of the problems this world faces with cyber censorship is what is going on in China. The government blocks many websites, searches, and software based on their content.
- EU-US Privacy Shield Still Not Protecting Your Privacy: Still collecting bulk data, problems with the... EU-US Privacy Shield Still Not Protecting Your Privacy: Still collecting bulk data, problems with the judicial redress act, and no true protection for businesses
- Copyright and Social Media: This has become a gray area. Almost everyone is guilty of... Copyright and Social Media: This has become a gray area. Almost everyone is guilty of sharing something on social media, whether it be Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest, that was copyrighted and not yours to share. But what is fair to ...
- How Your Devices are Tracking you and How to Stop it: Apple, Microsoft, and Android How Your Devices are Tracking you and How to Stop it: Apple, Microsoft, and Android
- Being Safe while Downloading Apps: With how many apps are downloaded it is always a... Being Safe while Downloading Apps: With how many apps are downloaded it is always a good idea to stay safe while downloading. You must take precautions, learn where to download, and do your research.