Online scams
Opinion: Are Online Scams Undermining Trust in SA Government Services?
Protecting citizens when they interact with digital government services is fast becoming a top priority for governments around the world. The astonishing growth of the global cybercrime industry and the perceived ease at which threat actors imitate trusted brands and government departments online is challenging governments to implement new measures to protect citizens. As one of the continent’s most developed and heavily industrialised economies, South Africa is an attractive target to the global cybercrime industry. Interpol’s African Cyberthreat Assessment Report 2021 found that South Africa led the way in all categories of cyberattacks, from digital extortion and online scams to business email compromise attacks. The 2021 Interpol report found that weak networks and poor security make c...
iPhone 14: Users Fall For Scams Ahead of the Release of Apple’s New Smartphone
Apple has confirmed the long-awaited new iPhone 14 will be announced to the public on the 7th of September during its global Apple Event in September. Cybersecurity experts at Kaspersky have already found numerous examples of phishing pages, offering to buy the 14 iPhone, but actually designed to empty victims’ bank accounts and steal their Apple ID accounts. Overall, from 10 to 25 August, Kaspersky security solutions detected more than 8,700 new iPhone-related phishing sites. As the iPhone 14 announcement date gets closer, the number of phishing pages has been also increasing. For example, on August 25, Kaspersky experts detected a total of 1,023 iPhone-related phishing pages, which is almost twice the average number of such malicious site detections per day for the period. The number of ...
Is Nigeria Facing a Phishing Epidemic?
Sourced from Pure Cloud Solutions According to a new Digital Payment survey from Russia-based cybersecurity group Kaspersky, a staggering 61% of respondents from Nigeria said they faced phishing scams when using online banking or mobile wallet services. 67% have personally encountered fake websites, and a massive 82% experienced scams (via texts or calls) using social engineering. When asked about awareness of threats against digital payment methods, the majority of respondents from Nigeria report that they are aware of both the financial phishing attacks (95%) and online scams (97%). 78% also stated that they are informed about banking malware on PCs and on mobile. This type of malicious software steals money from users’ bank accounts. However, 98% think that banks and payment companies s...
Digital Payments: Survey Reveals 35% South Africans Faced Phishing Scams
Image sourced from isnews.stir.ac.uk According to the Kaspersky Digital Payment survey, 35% of respondents from South Africa faced phishing scams when using online banking or mobile wallet services. 43% have personally encountered fake websites, and 59% experienced scams (via texts or calls) using social engineering. When asked about awareness of threats against digital payment methods, the majority of respondents from South Africa report that they are aware of both financial phishing attacks (94%) and online scams (95%). 78% also stated that they are informed about banking malware on PCs and on mobile. This type of malicious software steals money from users’ bank accounts. However, 98% think that banks and payment companies should educate users more about the threats online. When it comes...
How to Protect Yourself from Gift Card Scams This Holiday Season
Image sourced from NorthJersey.com This holiday season checking off that gift list will look a little different than in past years. Many shoppers are planning to rely on e-commerce for a significant amount of their holiday shopping. Digital gift card sales are also likely to increase. However, given the spike in digital activity predicted over the holidays, cybercriminals, too, will be making their lists and checking them twice. It’s a particularly risky time of the year as shoppers of all ages (including some with less experience recognising digital threats) flock to search engines and online channels to place orders before holiday delivery date cutoffs. And opportunistic hackers know just how to create enticing, seasonally-appropriate lures—and even some of the simplest scams c...
Online Car Scams On The Rise in SA – Here’s How to Avoid Them
South Africa’s biggest banks are warning customers about a marked increase in vehicle purchase scams. Criminals place adverts for fake vehicles online at hugely discounted prices to lure in buyers hunting for a great bargain. Sameer Kumandan, MD of SearchWorks, an innovative platform that allows consumers to perform live, accurate vehicle searches and valuations as well as company searches and property valuations, says South Africans are turning to online content for everything from comparing prices to doing more in-depth research, particularly when it comes to long term financial commitments such as buying a car. According to reports, fake vehicle adverts are relatively sophisticated and usually include photos to match the vehicle description with the contact details of the so-called sell...
7 Vital Facebook Settings You Can Change Right Now to Protect Your Privacy
Image sourced from Reuters. /* custom css */ .tdi_4_a0d.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_4_a0d.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } Nowadays it is more common than not to be working from home, and while this does offer advantages, it opens us up to many lurking dangers from cybercriminals and otherwise. Now more than ever we should try to protect ourselves from the dangers of the internet, and a hot spot for these dangers is the world’s favourite social media platform. In April this year alone, over 14-Million South African Facebook users were affected by a massive data breach. These settings can be changed on the browser version of Facebook, which this guide will be using. Though most of the settings can also be changed on the iOS or Android versions of the Facebook app, they may ...
9 Ways to Avoid being Scammed Online this Black Friday
Black Friday 2020 could be bigger online than in-store this year, thanks to concerns about the risk of COVID-19 in crowded shops, and an increase in the number of people now comfortable with shopping online. But for first-time online shoppers and those who might forget caution in their quest for a bargain, online shopping could be more lucrative for criminals than it is for consumers this Black Friday. Cybercriminals and old-fashioned fraudsters can take advantage of unwary shoppers in several ways: by getting access to their bank card details to steal money; by using personal information to commit fraud and theft; or simply by accepting payment for goods they don’t deliver. To avoid disappointment, theft and fraud, here are nine tips for safer online shopping this Black Friday: Make sure ...
Scam Attempts on Gumtree Have Surged During South Africa’s Lockdown
British classifieds platform popular with South Africans, Gumtree has seen an increase in scams during the country’s lockdown with criminals and fraudsters benefiting from scamming people over a distance. Estelle Nagel of Gumtree says that “The pandemic has seen more South Africans sell their items in an attempt to raise additional cash, and as those listings increase, so do scam attempts.” “With lockdown, buyers and sellers are inclined to transact online only rather than face to face or without viewing an item in person and using electronic payment methods rather than cash. This does lead to more instances of fraud,” she continues. With more and more South Africans desperately searching for cash during these tough times, Nagel says, they may be less risk-averse than normal and more likel...
