The 12 Scams of Christmas

‘Tis the season! Time for family, friends, food, presents, festivities and crime!
Unfortunately, scams always seem to ramp up with everything else around the holidays. Luckily for us, the folks over at McAfee have posted some helpful tips for keeping safe!

Their list follows, with some commentary…

Scam 1: Charity Phishing Scams – Be Careful Who You Give To
It’s a low down, dirty game but this scam hits you when you deserve it the least (not that you ever deserve it, but you know what I mean). Watch out for emails claiming to be from a charitable organization. They might contain links to fake websites set up to steal your donations and/or personal information.

Scam 2: Fake Invoices from Delivery Services to Steal Your Money
This time of year, presents are getting shipped all over the country and cybercriminals are ready to take advantage. Watch out for fake invoices and delivery notifications. I always ask my friends and relatives to let me know when to expect packages. It protects me from scammers and is a clever way to hint that I want presents!

Scam III: Social Networking – A Cybercriminal “Wants to be Your Friend”
I know how flattering it is to think perfect strangers want to be friends, but beware. This year there are more fake profiles than ever. These scammers are out to install malware on your PC and steal your password. And you just wanted to be friends!

Scam IV: The Dangers of Holiday E-Cards
Happy Holidays! Celebrate with the gift of malware. ‘Tis the season!

Scam V: “Luxury” Holiday Jewelry Comes at a High Price
Not only isn’t it Prada, it doesn’t even exist! Pay for the faux luxury goods and get less than you paid for and by that I mean, nothing.

Scam VI: Practice Safe Holiday Shopping – Online Identity Theft on the Rise
According to McAfee, you should never shop online from an open Wi-Fi network or a public computer. To me this sounds like overkill, but I’m not taking any chances.

Scam VII: Christmas Carol Lyrics Can Be Dangerous – Risky Holiday Searches
Yep, that’s right folks, searching for the lyrics to your favorite holiday songs could be serious trouble. I can feel myself getting scroogier by the second.

Scam VIII: Out of Work – Job-Related E-mail Scams
As if being unemployed wasn’t enough, now you get to enjoy the wolves. Here I’ll repeat what you’ve probably heard many times before: If it sounds too good to be true, it’s a scam.

Scam IX: Outbidding for Crime – Auction Site Fraud
I’ve never experienced this one but I guess auction sites aren’t the safest places to hang out. I’m not sure why these are any worse than other scam product sites. Thoughts?

Scam X: Password Stealing Scams
If you always use the same password, cracking one can give a cybercriminal access to all of your accounts. Use different passwords whenever possible and change them often.

Scam XI: E-Mail Banking Scams
When you sign up for a new account at a bank, they always say they will NEVER ask for your password. This is true and it’s worth remembering. I make it a general rule never to click on links in emails, unless they’re from a friend that I trust. If you’re worried a bank email might be legit, type the bank’s URL into a web browser and search their site for details. I bet you won’t find any!

Scam XII: Your Files for Ransom – Ransomware Scams
A new scareware tactic encrypts your files and holds them ransom until you pay up to have them decrypted. What will they think of next?

It’s a scary Internet out there but you can protect yourself by keeping your security software up to date and your wits about you. Avoid strange links, don’t open weird attachments, and keep your chin up!

We hope you have a safe, happy and crime-free holiday!

-TurnKey Internet

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