Two kinds of fraud — phishing and spear phishing are becoming more prevalent, Olds RCMP warn.
"Although the Olds detachment has received only a few complaints of this nature, it is becoming more common throughout the province," Olds RCMP commanding officer Staff Sgt. Jim MacDonald says.
One common online fraud is called phishing. In that case, a cyber criminal sends a message pretending to be from someone or an organization known by a potential victim.
They ask the victim to click on a malicious link or open an attachment .
The convincing emails are generic and are sent to thousands of people with hope that a few will respond to the scam.
As people have become more aware of this scam, the cyber criminals have responded by developing a modified scam called spear phishing.
Cyber criminals use spear phishing to target potential victims using information they learn on the Internet about that person's workplace or life.
They create a customized message and send it directly to the intended victim often pretending to be a specific family member, friend, supervisor or a co-worker.
They will also create an email address that looks very similar to the one belonging to the person known by the victim. The message will usually be signed as the trusted person they are pretending to be.
The cyber criminals will ask the victim to do them a favour or do something out of the ordinary, such as buy them iTunes or Google Play cards. They will usually claim to be too busy to do so themselves and ask for a response by email. They will then ask the victim to provide the card information and PIN numbers.
How do you determine if a message is legitimate?
Check the email address. It may appear to come from a real organization but in fact is a personal account (i.e. @gmail.com, @hotmail.com, etc.).
Be suspicious of emails that use generic salutations such as "Dear Customer." If it is from a trusted sender they should know your name.
However, just because it appears that you received a message from a friend or coworker does not mean they sent it. Their computer may have been hacked or the scammer is spear phishing by using the trusted person's name and a very similar email address.
Be suspicious of any grammar or spelling mistakes as the scams often originate from countries where English is not the first language.
Be suspicious if there is a sense of urgency or if they only want a response by email.
Be suspicious of any person or organization that uses the Internet or phone to attempt to have you provide them with gift card information such as iTunes or Google Play, any personal details or any information related to your banking or credit cards.
If you get a suspicious email from someone you normally trust, call them on the phone to confirm.
If you have responded to one of these suspicious emails and unwittingly provided personal, financial or gift card information, contact police and report the incident to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at http://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/index-eng.htm.
