Here are the most frequent scamming targets – eBay is No. 1. And below are some classic schemes that just keeping on working for the crooks who rely on them:
Money from Nigeria (or Cleveland): Unless you really do have an aunt in Nigeria, chances are the attorney trying to reach you and give you millions is a crook. "Nigeria is a lawless place and these Nigerians are seriously bad people," Yoder says. They are members of organized crime groups that have been running these scams for years, and even though the whole concept has become a joke, they still keep making money.
Stuck in a foreign country and needing help. These crooks break into your Facebook or Twitter account, impersonate a friend of yours and ask for money. Yoder says, "It's very convincing."
Orders to update your bank, Paypal or eBay account. Look hard at the address this kind of appeal is coming from. The first thing to the right of www. should be the name of the legitimate financial company you do business with. If it's not, hit delete as quickly as possible. "Particularly indicative of evil is a numerical address," Yoder says.
Requests to change your password: Whether they come from Facebook, MySpace, a bank or even your company's IT department, be suspicious.
Requests to open an attachment. Even if it is someone you know, this could be trouble, especially if the attachment ends in .exe or .pif
How to stop phishermen from catching
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