It’s 2018 and you’d think humanity would have stopped falling for online scams. After all, when you get an email from a Nigerian prince, you send it straight to your trash, right? Unfortunately, the truth is that if no one was still falling for that particular scam, you wouldn’t still be receiving those emails.
But even those more savvy among us, there are still common online scams we fall for. Yes, even people who work in the tech industry sometimes make stupid mistakes, which is why online scamming is still going strong in this day and age.
What exactly are people falling for? Here are 3 common scams still prevalent in 2018.
The common phishing scam
Phishing has been around for a while, but it’s somewhat understandable that people still fall for it. If you’re not familiar with what exactly phishing is, this refers to when an email or website sends you to a login page that looks like a site you frequent. When you enter your login details, you give them straight to the scammers.
Even if you’re well aware of phishing scams, it’s still possible to fall for them. When done well, the scammers create a landing page that looks exactly like the one they’re emulating. The email that leads you there is sent from a legitimate-seeming email address and has none of the usual spelling mistakes.
You can prevent yourself from falling for phishing scams by using a password manager, which will only input your details if it can verify the site. This way, you’re safe from your own self-destruction! Take a look at Bestonlinereviews for a comparison of the best password managers.
The CEO scam
Depending on what work you do, you may send hundreds of emails off every day. Some of them are simple intra-business responses, with important information or just a reply to a meeting request. Because of this, it’s not that difficult to fall for what some call the CEO scam.
This scam is carried out by people who know exactly what they’re looking for. They send you an email purportedly from your boss, from an email address that looks legitimate. Since you send so many emails of this kind, you reply with the sensitive information or documents they have requested.
Avoiding this scam requires you to be more vigilant. Before you send any sensitive information, make sure you’re sending it to the same email address you always use for the recipient.
Online dating scams
Online dating scams have evolved over the years, and there’s a number of reasons they still work. The first is that people on dating sites are lonely and more primed to responding to attention from attractive potential partners. The second is that until you meet face-to-face, intimacy can be easily faked. We all hate to admit it, but text messaging portrays very little of you or the person you’re talking to. Even charming phone calls can be faked, although less easily.
Meeting in person sooner rather than later is the best way to avoid this scam. Otherwise, you might get fooled into lending some money to someone you think you know. Alternatively, you’ll waste time getting to know someone and when they ask for money, you’ll be disappointed and furious with yourself.
Watch out for these and other scams whenever you are online.