Fake URL Shorteners

Posted by on 26 May, 2011 No comments

URL shorteners are so common these days people don’t give them a second thought. Especially on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Some common URL shorteners are

  • bit.ly
  • tiny.cc
  • fb.me

The list is endless. You can even make your own service, which is exactly what spammers are now doing.

Spam messages are now being posted on Twitter with these new URL shorteners and it’s difficult to filter them out. E.g. URLs that begin with

  • www.srtu.in/

The best thing you can do is to use a modern web browser that does some URL scanning, such as Chrome, Opera, or IE9 (older versions of IE are vulnerable). Also buy and install a good virus scanner.

More information about URL shorteners here.

 

 

One Million Euro SMS Scam

Posted by on 29 March, 2011 No comments

The following SMS is a scam,

Congratulations! You have won One Million Euro on orange mobile promotion; send your names and Mobile No. via email to; orange [at] citynew [.] com

Please don’t respond to this message. It’s part of a scam. Just delete it.

Facebook Survey Scam

Posted by on 27 February, 2011 No comments

This scam uses Facebook to trick people into completing a survey. It starts with an interesting Facebook message like the ones below,

CLICK HERE to see the status udpate that got a girl expelled from school!!

or

OMG… This GIRL KILLED Herself After HER DAD Posted This ON Her WALL!

or

OMG! Look What this Kid did to his School after being Expelled! After this 11 year old child was expelled from his school he went beserk

Anyone curious enough to click on the link is taken to a page that “looks like” Facebook, but isn’t Facebook. Then two things happen:

  1. You’re asked to “Like” the page, which adds the scam to your own Facebook wall. This is how the scam spreads.
  2. You’re also asked to fill in a survey. This is how the scammer is making money. They’re being paid by a marketing company to fill in these surveys.

And that’s it. There’s no interesting video or article. It’s just a viral scam – it spreads because it sounds interesting.

So if you come across this, don’t click on the links, and let the person who posted it know about the scam.

Thanks to DBM for writing in and letting me know about it. I’m sure that by letting others know about scams we can all help reduce them.

Fake Skype Email

Posted by on 27 February, 2011 No comments

This email claims to be from Skype, offering a new version to download. It’s fake, the link has nothing to do with Skype.

Remember, Skype does not email you and me with links to download. Skype will update itself.

NEW VERSION OF SKYPE 2011 IS RELEASED

Dear Skype Users,

To start New Year 2011 with new features, options and improvements, we’ve just released the new version of Skype Software.

<link removed for security reasons>

New in this version :

* Up to 5-way group video call.
* Redesigned calling experience.
* Improved video snapshots gallery.
* Improved browser plugins performance on some websites.
* Reduced false positives on browser plugin phone number recognition.
* New presence icons.
* Improved handling of calling attempts made when the user has run out of credit.
* Improved access to sharing functionality  

To check and download the latest version , go to :

<link removed for security reasons>

Start downloading the update right now and let us know what you think about it.

We’re working on making Skype better all the time !

Talk soon,

The people at Skype

====================== PROTECT YOUR PASSWORD ===========================
Skype or Skype Staff will NEVER ask you for your password via email. The only place you are asked for your password is when you sign in to the Skype application or our website.

If you see the above email, delete it or mark it as spam.

Fake Acrobat Reader 2011 Emails

Posted by on 27 February, 2011 No comments

The following email claims to be from Adobe and suggests to install a new version of Adobe Acrobat Reader. It’s fake. Adobe does not email people asking them to download and install new versions.

The email says:

ADOBE ACROBAT READER 2011 UPDATE NOTIFICATION

This is to remind that a new version of Adobe Acrobat Reader 2011 with enhanced features for viewing, creating, editing, printing and internet-sharing PDF documents has been released.

To check and download the latest version , go to :

<link removed for security reasons>

Start downloading the update right now and let us know what you think about it.

We’re working on making Adobe Acrobat Reader better all the time !

Thanks and best regards,

Adobe Support

© 2011 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved.
Adobe Systems Incorporated |343 Preston Street | Ottawa | ON | K1S 1N4 | Canada |

Remember, if you see this email just delete it, or mark it as spam.

Update: There’s now another version of this email, it too is a scam. The email looks like:

Adobe is pleased to announce that a new version of Acrobat PDF Reader was released today with new features, options and improvements.
<link removed for security>
What’s new in this version :
* Read, search, and share PDF files. * Convert to PDF. * Export and edit PDF files * Add rich media to PDF files * Combine files from multiple applications * Increase productivity and process consistency * Streamline document reviews * Collect data with fillable PDF forms * Protect PDF files and content * Comply with PDF and accessibility standards
To get more and upgrade to this version, go to  :
<link removed for security>
Start downloading the update right now and let us know what you think about it.
We’re working on making Adobe Acrobat Reader better all the time !
Talk soon,
The people at Adobe
Copyright © 2011 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved.

Android Phone Virus Listens In On Calls

Posted by on 25 February, 2011 No comments

This had to happen sooner or later. A virus has been discovered that can affect Android phones. It uses the conference call feature of the phone to send your conversations to a remote server (spying on your conversations).

The virus is reported to now be on over 150,000 phones. This is quite serious. There are also two strains of the virus now, indicating that people are working on making things worse for everyone.

This virus is called HongTouTou. It was discovered in an app called Dynamic Footprint Wallpaper, hosted on an app store in China. More information here.

How can a phone get a virus?

Android phones are smartphones, meaning the phone is actually a computer. And like any other computer you can download and install programs onto it, commonly called Apps.

Now the philosophy behind Android phones is that it’s less regulated than other phones, such as Apple’s iPhone, and you’re free to install any app you want. Even ones that contain viruses.

With Android phones you have a choice where to download your apps from. And unfortunately this included untrusted sources where people can add viruses to apps. It’s all very similar to Windows PCs and the popular viruses from a few years ago.

What about iPhones and other phones?

This particular virus only affects Android, not any other phones.

How to avoid HongTouTou?

For now the best thing to do is to only use app stores you trust. Don’t rush into downloading an app just because it’s popular or cool, read up on it first.

 

Fake Adobe Acrobat Links

Posted by on 15 November, 2010 No comments

The email shown below is not from Adobe, it’s a fake. It has words that would get most people’s attention but the links in the email do not point to any real Adobe products. If you receive this email, delete it. Don’t click on the links.

The fake email looks like this:

Dear Customers,
Adobe is pleased to announce new version upgrades for Adobe Acrobat 2010.
http:// www.adobe-new-software.com
Advanced features include:
- Collaborate across borders
- Create rich, polished PDF files from any application that prints
- Ensure visual fidelity
- Encrypt and share PDF files more securely
- Use the standard for document archival and exchange
To upgrade and enhance your work productivity today, go to:
http://www.adobe-new-software.com
If you have any question please contact us at: support@adobe-new-software.com
Best regards,
Michael Lobenberg
Adobe Acrobat
Copy rights © Adobe Acrobat 2010 – All Rights Reserved
Website: http:// www.adobe-new-software.com

Dear Customers, Adobe is pleased to announce new version upgrades for Adobe Acrobat 2010.
http:// www.adobe-new-software.com Advanced features include:
- Collaborate across borders- Create rich, polished PDF files from any application that prints- Ensure visual fidelity- Encrypt and share PDF files more securely- Use the standard for document archival and exchange To upgrade and enhance your work productivity today, go to:
http://www.adobe-new-software.com  If you have any question please contact us at: support@adobe-new-software.com Best regards, Michael Lobenberg Adobe AcrobatCopy rights © Adobe Acrobat 2010 – All Rights Reserved Website: http:// www.adobe-new-software.com

Adobe does not send out emails like this. Acrobat Reader can update itself by showing a small window with update information (and you should update it as soon as updates are released). You should not have to visit a web site to download Acrobat updates.

Chase.com Scam Email

Posted by on 18 October, 2010 1 comment

The following email is a scam, it looks confusing and encourages readers to click on a link. And there are many links in this email, all pointing to a hacker’s virus infected site.

Below is the email, with personal details and all of the malicious links removed:

Dear …,

Thank you for scheduling your recent credit card payment online. Your ($USD) $117.00 payment will post to your credit card account (CREDIT CARD) on 08/06/2010.

Now that you’re making your payment online, are you aware of all the convenient ways you can manage your account online?

Just log on to www.chase.com/creditcards today. Using the "I’d like to…" links for your credit card account, you can access more than a dozen features, including links to:
See statements – Choose to stop receiving paper statements, and see up to six years of your statements online.
See automatic payments – Set up monthly payments to be made automatically.
Transfer a balance – Transfer a balance to your credit card account.
Go to Personalized Alerts – Schedule Alerts to remind you of key account activity.
You can also see past payments you’ve made online by logging on to www.chase.com/creditcards and clicking "See/cancel payments" under "I’d like to …"

If you have questions, please call the Customer Service number on the back of your credit card.

Thanks again for using online payments.

Sincerely,
Cardmember Services

Never trust emails like this, especially if you don’t have an account with the company.

A useful trick to spot these scams is:

  • Identify which company the email claims to be from. In this case, it’s a company called Chase.
  • Place your mouse pointer over a link, but don’t click.
  • Look at the bottom of your screen, you should see the real link it points to. (You need to be using a modern web browser for this to work).
  • If the addresses don’t match then it’s likely a scam.

E.g., the email above talks a lot about chase.com. This is a real company in USA. scam link - do not visit this siteWhen I place my mouse pointer over the link, my browser says it goes somewhere different. The addresses don’t match, this is a scam. See the picture on the right.

Fake Website Warning

Posted by on 26 September, 2010 No comments

As if malicious web sites weren’t enough of a problem now we have web sites with fake warnings that look just like the real thing.

Google Chrome has an excellent system that warns of dangerous web sites. When you click on a link to a dangerous (malicious) site, hopefully it will give you a large red warning page.

Now someone has been using this to trick people into thinking the website is malicious. It also asks you to download something called “Google Chrome secure updates” – this is bad, you shouldn’t have to install anything.

Here is the fake warning message (click to enlarge):

fake warning message

The popup message says:

This web page has been blocked based on your security preferences. Click ‘OK’ to download and install Google Chrome secure updates.

And here is the real warning message:

real warning message

So never trust web sites that ask you to download anything, and if in doubt search Google for more information.