Some of the Latest Scams We Have Seen This Year
The IRS or Tax Debt Scam
We are still getting reports of phone calls being made, claiming to be from the IRS or representing the IRS, about a tax debt you owe. We have seen both automated recordings and live scammers making these calls. Be assured that the IRS always makes first contact by mail, if they are considering action or just making an inquiry. The only time they would contact you by phone would be if you have contacted them and requested a call back or if after corresponding by mail, they need to schedule an on-site visit for an audit or inquiry.
The Windows Security Scam
This one seems to mutate to many different scripts, but it is generally always a phone call saying that your computer is sending them warning messages and that they (the caller) has been tasked with helping you fix it. They will try to talk you into helping them take remote control of your computer at which time they will silently install malware on your computer that could do anything from tracking the internet sites you go to, to transmitting personal information to them. Then once installed, they will show you some error messages and as you to pay them to fix it. I have seen people get burnt for upwards of $600 on this. This scam works well on people who are not very computer savvy. The callers can be very convincing. One of the reasons this one convinces some, is because occasionally when a Windows Error occurs, Windows will ask if you want to send the error message to Windows to see if there is a solution. This is a completely automated function and no one actually is receiving this message. The error is just being checked against a database of error for a match, then I would show you the info if it found a match. Microsoft is not going to contact users unsolicited, to help resolve issues.
UPS, DHL or FedEx Scam
This one is in the form of an email with an attachment. The message would say something to the effect of, “We could not deliver your package. Please click the attached copy of the shipping label.” When you click the attachment, it will try to install some sort of malware on your system. If you have good up to date antivirus, it may block it, but sometimes it won’t.
Thank you for your purchase Scam
This scam is an email that is thanking you for making a purchase and usually is accompanied by an amount of the purchase and an attachment with the invoice. When you click on the invoice attachment it installs its malware.
Well those are some of the latest threats that we are seeing right now. I’m sure tomorrow will bring new threats our way and we will share them when we know about them. Remember to pay attention to those attachments.
