The term internet scam internet fraud refers to any type of
fraud scheme that user one or more online service to conduct fraudulent
activities. Internet fraud can take place on computer programs such as
Chat rooms, email, message
boards or websites in this post I will discuss about some of the commonly
conducted scams and frauds across the internet
1. Phishing scam
This is one of the most commonly used to scam to steal bank
login and other types of passwords on the internet. Phishing is the criminally fraudulent
process of attempting to acquire sensitive information such as usernames,
passwords and credit card details by masquerading as a trust worthy entity in
an electronic communication. Phishing is typically carried out by e-mail or
instant messaging
EXAMPLE: You may receive an email which claims to have from
your bank /financial institution/online service provider that asks you to click
a link and update your account information. When you click such a link it will
take you to a fake page which exactly resembles the original ones here you’ll
be asked to enter your personal details such as user name and passwords. Ones
you enter your personal details they will be stolen away. Such an email is more
than likely the type of internet scam known as phishing. Phishing is said to be
highly effective and has proved to have more success rate since most of the
common people fail to identify the scam
Most legitimate companies never request any kind of
personal/sensitive information via email. So It is highly recommended that you
do not respond to such fraudulent emails for more information on phishing visit
my detailed post what is phishing?
2. Nigerian scams
This type of scam involves sending emails (spam) to people
in bulk seeking their help to access large amount of money that is held up in a
foreign bank account. This email claims that in return for the help you’ll be
rewarded a percentage of the found that involves in the transaction never
respond to these emails since it’s none other than a scam
In case if you respond to these emails you will be asked to
deposit a small account of money (say
1-2% of the whole fund ) as an insurance or as an advanced payment for the
initialization of deal. However ones you deposit the amount to the scammers
account you’ll not get any further response from them and you lose your money
in fact “The large amount of money “never exists and the whole story is a trap
for innocent people who are likely to become victims the scammers use a variety
of stories to explain why they need your help to access the funds. The
following are some of the example of them
EXAMPLES:
Ø
They may claim that political climate or legal
issues preclude them from accessing funds in a foreign bank account
Ø
They may claim that the person is a minor and
hence need your help to access the funds
Ø
They may claim that your last name is the same
as that of the deceased person who
owned the account and suggest that you
act as the next of this person in order to gain access to the funds
3. Lottery scams
This type of scam is similar to the
one discussed above. In this type you may receive an email saying that you have
won a large sum of money in on line lottery scheme (ex.UK lottery) even though
you have not participated in any such schemes the message claims that your email
ID was selected randomly from a large pool of ID’S when you respond to such
emails they initially ask for your complete name and address so that they can
mail the cheque across to you. After getting those details they may also send
you an image of the cheque drawn in your name and address so as to confirm the
deal. But in order to mail this cheque they demand a small amount of money as
insurance/shipping charge/tax in return. However if you send the amount in hope
to receive the cheque all you get is nothing.
You’re just trapped in a wonderful scam
4. Other general scams and frauds
The
following are some of the other types of scams that you should be aware of
In general, be aware of unsolicited emails that:
1.
Promise you money , jobs or prizes
2.
Ask you to provide sensitive personal
information
3.
Ask you to follow a link to a website and log on
to an account
4.
Propose lucrative business deals
However it may seem to be a difficult task for novice
internet users to identify such online scams. Here are some of the common signs
of such scam emails. By knowing them it may help you to say away
Ø
All these scam emails never address you by your
name. in turn they commonly address you something like “dear user “ or “dear
customer” etc. this is a clear indication that the email is a fraudulent one
Ø
When you observe the email header you may notice
in the “To” field that, the same email is forwarded to a large group of people
or the “To” field appears blank. So this confirms that
The email was not intended particularly for
you. It was forwarded for a large group of people and you are one among them
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