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Sadly, Internet scams are becoming more sophisticated every day. Luckily, so are the security measures against them, including educational resources like this site, consumer identity protection, new high-security Web browsers, and more.
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Spam |
Unsolicited email, meaning promotional or possibly fraudulent email from a company that you didn’t authorize to send you messages.
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Phishing/Spoofing |
Phishers will impersonate a legitimate company by sending fake emails or creating fake Web sites in order to acquire your personal information—like PINs, credit card or bank account numbers, or Social Security info. Find out how to identify and avoid phishing scams with our interactive game,
Phish or No Phish.
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Spyware |
Software that records your personal information without you realizing it. Several anti-spyware software programs are available to combat spyware.
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Pharmacy fraud |
Before you buy discounted drugs or medication online, ask yourself if the site is legitimate. Look for the VeriSign Secured® Seal, or other identifiers, to determine if the site is secure. If the deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
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Get-out-of-debt fraud |
Many online debt elimination resources are fraudulent. Be wary. Investigate them thoroughly. If they aren’t a legitimate 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, then it’s likely that they’re trying to take advantage of your debt-related vulnerability.
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International schemes |
Don’t respond to emails that suggest you have won or inherited money from someone in a foreign country—Nigeria and Eastern European countries are where many of these emails originate. And any scheme that asks you to give advance money for a larger sum in return is too good to be true, and will always be fraudulent.
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Evil twin |
A fake Wi-Fi network set up near to and often using a similar name as a real public Wi-Fi network, like those in libraries, parks, and coffee shops. If you unknowingly join the evil twin network, the criminal behind it will have access to all of the information on your computer.
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