Easter May be a Good Opportunity for Scammers

SCAMwatch, a website run by Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and also the campaign portal for Australian Consumer Fraud Taskforce, is asking people to be cautious of 'Easter Scams'.

From the past experience, it is clear that scammers don't take too long to exploit domestic and global events and holidays, said ACCC. So, they are most likely to strike once again on the occasion of Easter as it is a global event.

ACCC has listed top three scams that Internet users should be watchful of so as to avoid being deceived by the fraudsters. Firstly, they should be cautious of 'fundraising scams' as Easter represents a high time for raising charity, especially for children. So, scammers exploit this occasion by pretending to be an employee of a famous charity organization. In this way, scammers may target users by sending spam e-mails.

The second way in which users may be exploited is with the help of malware. According to ACCC, here scammers use a fake e-mail to distribute malware software and viruses on the user's PC. Normally, the titles and headings used in these scams are catchy, so as to lure user into opening the e-mails.

Thirdly, Easter is also a good time for many families to go on vacations. So here scammers offer heavy discounts on holidays and accommodation rates by means of unsolicited e-mails. The scam normally comprises full or substantial up-front payments, generally through cash money wire, which is untraceable.

Security experts have already said that scams are increasing year after year. However, if users follow some basic tips, they can avoid being deceived by the Easter scams. First thing that users should ensure is that their names should be there in the greeting. Majority of authentic sites will contain a name for greeting and the name of the person who has sent that card. Moreover, users should make sure that their PCs are protected from all sorts of malicious attacks, and for this they should regularly update their security solutions.

Lastly, the most important thing to be remembered is that users should not divulge their personal and financial details to such unsolicited e-mails. They should inform about such e-mails to ACCC Infocentre through their helpdesk numbers, or they may report the same by logging on to SCAMwatch.

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» SPAMfighter News - 4/2/2010