scam

Fri
01
Feb
Dennis Faas's picture

Scammed by PC / Web Network Experts? Here's What to Do

Infopackets Reader Sally S. writes: " Dear Dennis, Last week I was using the web browser and suddenly I received an alert that my PC needed to be updated, and told me to call 855-558-9222 855-500-0395 to fix the problem. I called the number and ... spoke to someone with an Indian accent . They connected to my PC and installed a firewall and some other programs. They told me it would cost $199 to fix it, or I could pay $799 as an 'upgrade' for a 5 year tech support contract (which I did). I am still receiving pop up advertisements on my machine and it appears that I am no better off than when I ... (view more)

Thu
31
Jan
John Lister's picture

Robocalls, Spam Likely to Surpass Legit Calls in 2019

The number of robocalls to Americans rose by nearly 50 percent last year, according to a newly-published estimate. It's consistent with other reports that suggest that 2019 will be the first year where half of all phone calls are marketing messages. ... The figure comes from Hiya, a "spam-monitoring service" and is based on data from 450,000 users of its phone app. There's reason for a note of caution on the raw numbers, as it's possible the type of people who would use such an app are getting more unwanted calls than the average citizen in the first place. That aside, Hiya says that if the ... (view more)

Thu
06
Dec
John Lister's picture

Quora Site Hacked; Names, Emails and Passwords Stolen

Question site "Quora" has become the latest high-profile hacking victim, with details of more than 100 million users breached. Fortunately, the implications likely won't be as serious as some previous hacks. The site lets users post questions and ... then get answers from other users. A voting system means more helpful answers from its community means the best answers float to the top. Quora says its systems were accessed without authorization and that it discovered the breach on November 30, 2018. It says the exposed information included account information such as name, email address ... (view more)

Mon
03
Dec
Dennis Faas's picture

How to Fix: Block Bitcoin Email Spam (Regex, Postfix)

Infopackets Reader Sam G. writes: " Dear Dennis, I came across your website while researching a postfix question. I am also a Linux systems administrator. As of late our organization has been bombarded with scam emails from 'hackers' purporting to ... have hacked our email accounts and PCs, and are demanding $800 in the form of bitcoin ('hush money') to keep things quiet. Is there any way to block all emails with bitcoin wallet requests? I would say 9.9 times out of 10, any bitcoin wallet money request through email is a scam. " My response: For the record this same bitcoin scam email is being ... (view more)

Thu
29
Nov
John Lister's picture

Web Users Warned Over Browser Green Padlock Trickery

Security researchers have warned that nearly half of all phishing sites falsely display the browser padlock symbol commonly associated with secure websites. It's a reminder that the browser padlock symbol only covers one aspect of security. Most ... major browsers display the padlock symbol when a website uses a technology, most commonly Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), to encrypt data as it passes between the user's computer and the website, or vice versa. Such sites have an address starting "https://" rather than "http://". The purpose of the padlock symbol is to indicate to the user that the ... (view more)

Fri
09
Nov
Dennis Faas's picture

How to Fix: Hackers Hacked My Phone, Demand Bitcoin (Scam)

Infopackets Reader Nathan J. writes: " Dear Dennis, I recently received an email stating that hackers have hacked my phone. As proof of their hack, they gave me the last 2 digits of my phone number. They claim to have uploaded spying software on my ... phone and have supposedly 'caught me' visiting raunchy websites. To keep this quiet, they are demanding bitcoin payment of $800 USD. How can they hack my phone like this? Can they hack my PC too? Should I be worried? " My response: This is yet another version of the same scam that is currently going around the Internet. Related: How to Fix: Hackers ... (view more)

Wed
07
Nov
John Lister's picture

Chrome To Block Ads On Scam Websites

Google's Chrome browser will soon block all ads on sites that have "abusive experiences" for users. It's designed as a way to put financial pressure on scammers. It's a new step following on from an existing attempt to protect users against ... misleading websites. 'Misleading' has a couple of meanings in this context. One is sites that carry pop-up or other ads that falsely claim to be system warnings, such as those which state the user's computer has malware. In this case, the user either downloads (and pays for) fake security software to "fix" the "problem", or is directed ... (view more)

Fri
26
Oct
Dennis Faas's picture

How to Fix: Activation Key Damaged (Scam)

Infopackets Reader Jack F. writes: " Dear Dennis, My Edge web browser randomly displays a security alert stating that 'The server www[dot]mariopullmesdas.info is asking for your user name and password. The page reports an error code of 0x80070424, ... then says that my 'Activation key is damaged'. To fix the problem I need to call the Microsoft Help Desk at (855)-684-9323. A computer generated voice says that my computer will keep restarting every few minutes if I don't fix the problem and that my personal data is at risk. What do I do? " My response: This is a web browser fake tech support scam ... (view more)

Thu
25
Oct
Dennis Faas's picture

How to Fix: Hackers Hacked My Email, Demand Bitcoin (Scam)

Infopackets Reader Sam G. writes: " Dear Dennis, I get emails from hackers a few times a week saying that they have cracked my email account. As proof, they have supplied me with the correct password for the account. The message goes on to say that ... they have planted a Trojan on my computer which allows them to spy on me. Here's where it gets interesting. The hackers say I have been visiting websites of people in the buff. They are demanding I pay them bitcoin (worth $831) to keep this quiet, otherwise they will send images from the purported site I've visited and also a picture of me on my ... (view more)

Thu
04
Oct
John Lister's picture

Google Cracks Down On Browser Scams

Google is taking several more steps to make browser extensions safer. It's giving users more control and cracking down on some common rogue practices. The changes are to Chrome's extensions. Also known as add-ons with some browsers, extensions are ... third-party tools designed to improve the online experience using a web browser. For example, an Amazon extension lets users send text on a web page (such as a lengthy article) straight to their Kindle e-reader as a document with one click. By nature, extensions need some degree of access to and control over Chrome itself, which sometimes means the ... (view more)

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