Recognize and Prevent Scams (2024)

FAQs

How can you prevent scamming? ›

Always verify you are speaking to a legitimate organization.

Even if you get an email or a text message you think is real, avoid clicking on any links. Instead, contact the sender using a website you know is trustworthy, or look up the number on an official website.

Here are some ways to recognize a phishing email: Urgent call to action or threats - Be suspicious of emails and Teams messages that claim you must click, call, or open an attachment immediately. Often, they'll claim you have to act now to claim a reward or avoid a penalty.

Never provide your personal information in response to an unsolicited request, whether it is over the phone or over the Internet. Emails and Internet pages created by phishers may look exactly like the real thing. They may even have a fake padlock icon that ordinarily is used to denote a secure site.

Romance scammers will encourage secrecy and will influence you to only trust them. They may try to isolate you from your family and friends. There will always be an excuse why they can't meet in person or show themselves on camera. They say they live overseas or somewhere remote, or their technology isn't working.

By posing as government officials, company representatives, or law enforcement officers, scammers exploit trust to convince victims to share personal information, provide access to financial accounts, or make financial transactions. Trusting these impostors increases the risk of falling victim to scams.

Look for: Unsolicited and suspicious messages, emails and social posts containing shortened links. Web pages that ask for login credentials or other sensitive information. Suspicious emails with uncharacteristic language.

Even for cautious users, it's sometimes difficult to detect a phishing attack. These attacks become more sophisticated over time, and hackers find ways to tailor their scams and give very convincing messages, which can easily trip people up.

What are 4 things to look for in phishing messages? ›

Grammar errors and misspelled words. Email addresses and domain names that don't match. Unusual content or request – these often involve a transfer of funds or requests for login credentials. Urgency – ACT NOW, IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED.

Definitions: A technique for attempting to acquire sensitive data, such as bank account numbers, through a fraudulent solicitation in email or on a web site, in which the perpetrator masquerades as a legitimate business or reputable person.

Phishing works by sending messages that look like they are from a legitimate company or website. Phishing messages will usually contain a link that takes the user to a fake website that looks like the real thing. The user is then asked to enter personal information, such as their credit card number.

Phishing is a type of social engineering attack often used to steal user data, including login credentials and credit card numbers. It occurs when an attacker, masquerading as a trusted entity, dupes a victim into opening an email, instant message, or text message.

What Is Phishing? Phishing attacks are the practice of sending fraudulent communications that appear to come from a reputable source. It is usually done through email. The goal is to steal sensitive data like credit card and login information, or to install malware on the victim's machine.