How To Avoid Online Financial Scams – 5

Continuing my series on How To Avoid Online Financial Scams series. As highlighted by the China Public Security Bureau earlier this year.

The aim is to share the knowledge about online financial scams.

So that more people are aware of the scams: and take necessary precautions.

7. Trojan Horse, Phishing Scams as Online Financial Scams

A. Fictitious Platform Scam

Scammers use fictitious platform to trick public about upgrade incentive, 10086 mobile shopping mall cash exchange links.

Once the victims click on the links, a Trojan horse malware will be inserted into the victim's phone.

The scammers retrieve banking account numbers, passwords and phone numbers.

B. Phishing Website Scam

Scammers use the following reasons to scam the victims:

• that online banking need to upgrade,
• request the victim to register, and
• log in to the phishing website, and
• obtain the victim's banking particulars,
• such as bank account number,
• online banking password and
• mobile transactions' data.

8. Others New Illegal Cheating Online Financial Scams.

A. SMS Communication For School Scam

• Scammers use the school communication network,
• broadcast some short messages, which is infested with Trojan horse malware,
• once the victim click on the links,
• the mobile phone will be infected with the malware,
• as a result, any banking data in the phone will be retrieved.

B. Traffic Offense Notice Short Message Scam

Scammers use the fictitious website to send notification on traffic offense short message.

This type of message is infected with Trojan Horse malware.

What happen is ,once the victim click on the links, all the available will be retrieved by scammers.

Two possibilities happen:

1. the victim either suffered loss on phone bill, which is a lighter loss,
2. more serious will be information on his banking details in the phone will be accessed and stolen electronically.

C. Electronic Cards Scam

Scammers use invitation e-cards to send to victims, and once victims click on the e-cards.

The following will happen:

• it will activate the spyware in the e-card, and
• assuming the victim is using his phone to access the e-card,
• the spyware will be able to retrieve the necessary data,
• such as bank account number, password, communication records and
• if the spyware is more advance, it may just obtain the rest of the victim's friends details from the phone.

D. Trojan Album Scam

Scammers impersonated as the mistress to instigate the victim to click on the album link, and activate the spyware, which will retrieve the data required.

E. Finance Transaction Scam

• Scammers use the Securities firms' names,
• through internet, phones, short messaging
• to spread the news about inside information, and
• the trends of the stocks
• to gain the trust of the victims,
• after that convince the victims
• to use the platform set up by the scammers
• to trade, and scam the money from the victims.

F. Credit Cards Processing Scam

Scammers use the media to advertise for high value credit cards.

Once the victims contact them, they will require the victims to pay for introducers fees, processing fees and so on.

G. Loan Scam

1. Scammers use the group chat to send out messages, that
2. they can help those who require some urgent short term financing
3. to secure low interest and clean loan facilities.
4. Upon hearing this, and
5. if the victims are convinced,
6. they will insist on the victim prepay the low interest and guarantee fees
7. to scam the victims.

H. Sim Card Scam

Scammers send short messages claiming they are able to duplicate the sim cards, and eve drop telephone conversation.

Cashing in on human's tenancy to be secretive

Some users for their own reason, wish to have such service of having duplicated sim cards.

They will contact the scammer, and without realizing what they are getting into.

The scammers, under the gist of cost of the cards, prepaid payment and so on, will require the victim to pay for cost.

I. Fictitious Sexual Service Scam

• Scammers use internet to purportedly offering sexual services, and
• provide a contact number to call.
• Once the victim contacted them,
• scammers want the victim to pay first before providing house call service.
• If the victim pay online as instructed,
• the moment the money is remitted,
• the victim soon realize he is scammed.

J. Providing Exam Questions/Papers Scam.

This scam works in the following manners:

• Scammer targets those students
• who are sitting for exam, and
• who are eager to do well at all cost,
• they tell the exam candidates that
• they have the questions and answers
• to the examination the student will be sitting,

The Results of this scam

• once the initial payment is made,
• the students realize they have been scammed.

K. Accounts Theft, and Scam on Credibility Campaign In The Online Financial Scams

How do the scammer carry out this scam?

1. Scammer hacked into the business platform, and
2. broadcast they genuinely looking for part-timers
3. who want to help online shop to gain credibility,
4. can earn commission by promoting the online shop.

The results of human greed

1. Victims follow the instruction given by the scammer and
2. purchase online, and
3. sooner realized they have been scammed.

L. Impersonating Secret Society In Extortion Scam.

Scammers will carry out the following modus operandi:

• Scammers obtain the target's particulars,
• such as phone number, profession, NRIC and other personal data,
• scammer call the victim, and
• acting as if they are calling from secret society,
• being hired by someone to cause harm to victim,
• unless the victim pay some money to avoid being harmed, and
• ask the victim to remit money to the bank account given.

M. Fake WiFi at Public Place Scam.

When you use public WIFI, you need to be careful.

Scammers will use some phishing application to  phish.

how doe this work?

• If the victim login to the free WiFi,
• the scammer will use the data downloading and uploading process,
• extract the user's particulars, and data in the phone and various passwords,
• subsequently they will use that to blackmail the victims.

N. Encrypted Bank Card Scam

• Scammer intentionally drop the encrypted bank card
• which has the label of the phone number to activate the card,
• if a person is greedy in getting a free card
• called the activation number for the card and
• deposit money into the scammer account.

O. Irregular Fund Movement Online Financial Scams.

Scam steal the victim's login ID and password, and create an irregular fund movement situation, and after that impersonating customer service, ask the victim to provide his phone number to receive verification code to cheat.

P. First Transfer, Then Withdraw and After That Canceled Online Financial Scams.

Scammer use the bank new regulation on fund transfer, and the time gap between transfer and credit to account to set up a trap.

This is how it is done

1. Scammer transfer the money,
2. then withdraw the cash,
3. once obtain the cash,
4. cancel the transfer.

Q. Change of SIM Card Scam

How do scammer carry out the scam on this?

1. Scammer use hundreds short messaging and harassing phone calls to call victim's phone,
2. Conceal the 10086 customer service's message to the phone number on the replaced SIM Card activation.
3. After that, take a copy of the identity card showing the victim particular,
4. go to the customer service counter to request for a replacement card.

results of this scam

• This will de-activate the real phone number owner's phone,
• following which, the scammer use the number to get the one time short messaging from the bank
• to withdraw the money using the phone APP.

R. Change of Phone Number Notification Scam

Scammer uses illegal way to obtain the phone owner's communication records.

The scammer will impersonate the phone owner to send short messages to the phone lists in the phone, claiming he has recently changed contact number and use that to scam their target.

S. QR Code Cloned As Online Financial Scams

Nowadays people like to use QR Code to make payment, especially when in the rush to buy food from the hawker stalls, however scammer can use an APP to clone the user's details.

Are you aware of what you are doing?

Normally when a person pays using QR Code, he has the tendency to hold up the phone upright.

Scammer can just stand within meters behind the person and use his phone to capture the same image and use it later.

Conclusion

If you have any questions or wish to share your experience on this topic.

Please leave your comments, questions and your experience in the feedback space below.

I would be glad to get back to you.

thank you for your feedback, comments and sharing of your experience.