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How to protect yourself from online scammers

milaeryomina

Two-thirds or 64% of Latvians have personally experienced attempts to scam via email, phone or social media.

20% of respondents became victims of fraudsters and lost money, according to a  survey conducted by the Swedbank Institute of Finance .

According to the survey results, fraudulent offers are mainly received by email (45%), while in social networks and in the format of phone calls - twice less often. Although every third resident (36%) indicates that he has not encountered fraudulent messages, in some cases this is explained by a lower ability to recognize them. This is evidenced by in-depth answers to questions about data security in the digital environment. Thus, the survey showed that 64% of residents do not know how to recognize a website that is safe for payments, while every fifth respondent (21%) relies on false ideas when determining the signs that allow recognizing a safe website. In general, only a quarter of residents feel themselves competent and absolutely literate in matters of financial security on the Internet,

Experience teaches
Although 79% of the respondents are absolutely sure that the bank will never ask by e-mail to disclose personal information, including access codes to the Internet bank, 21% of residents still partially or completely admit that the bank could do this, and thus put themselves at risk of being scammed.

“Residents who have encountered fraud at least once are more vigilant in the implementation of certain actions than those who do not have such experience. They spend more time regularly checking bank accounts and reporting suspicious activity, they are more cautious when posting personal information on social networks, and transfers are made on sites that are safe for payments. Unfortunately, most of the society has significant gaps in issues related to Internet security, so there is a risk of becoming potential victims of fraud, ”notes  Evija Kropa , expert at the Swedbank Institute of Finance  .

The losses are small, but painful
The tactics of Internet fraudsters in most cases are based on extorting small amounts from the maximum number of "Clients". A person who, due to his inattention or ignorance, parted with several tens of euros, most likely, will not contact the police and will not report fraud. The damage in this case can be considered more moral than material.

Speaking about the sums of money that Latvian residents who became victims of fraudsters had to part with, it can be noted that most of the losses were small - up to 50 euros. Only 8% admitted that they had lost from 50 to 500 euros, and another 3% paid amounts exceeding 500 euros for their carelessness, confronting fraudsters. Most often, residents with low and middle incomes, as well as seniors over 60 years old, responded to fraudulent offers. “Although in terms of money, individually lost amounts are not assessed as very large, the trend that more or less financial damage experienced one in five respondents indicates the extent of the problem. The overall benefit to fraudsters is significant, and it is clear that the number of fraudulent extortion attempts will not decrease in the future. This, of course, is not the basis, Rather, avoiding digital activity requires an awareness of the potential risks and due diligence. There are many cases when the lack of attention and even frivolity of the user become a trump card for fraudsters, ”says E. Kropa.

In addition, it was noticed that when faced with financial fraud, residents relatively rarely turn to various institutions. In most cases, those who have lost money as a result of fraudulent activities share this information with loved ones, but very rarely contact the general public or institutions, including the police or a bank - this is done by about a fifth of the victims.

The most common types of online fraud
Fraudulent online shopping

Scammers create fake online stores that offer branded products at incredibly low prices. When making purchases in such stores, you run the risk of buying "fake" things or simply transferring money to the account of scammers. Such stores disappear very quickly, taking with them the bank details of gullible customers.  

How to proceed?

Read customer reviews before making a purchase. Try to contact the store by phone or email - scammers usually don't respond. Shop on well-known and relatively reliable sites such as 220.lv, 1A.lv,  eBay, Amazon, AliExpress .

Hidden subscription agreements
The company, ostensibly offering the services of an Internet provider, gives new customers a free "trial period" - a monthly or annual subscription. It is usually offered the option to terminate the membership before the end of the trial period. However, it turns out that the termination process is so intricate and complex that it is practically impossible to go through it. In the best case, you will have to pay for another subscription period for a service whose quality does not even remotely match the declared one.

How to proceed?
Always read the terms and conditions and privacy policy that you are asked to confirm. Make sure you can easily mark your subscription or subscription at any time, and remember the date when the trial period ends. Before signing the contract, enter the company name in  Googl an e , to see if it exists, and give anyone her complaint. Go to the Internet Bank and check if the subscription / subscription fee has not been charged from your account. Try not to give your banking information to unknown services for a trial period.

Promises of millions
Fraudsters create “fake” sites or social media profiles showing luxury living and tons of money. All this is accompanied by an incredible success story that is available to everyone. You just need to acquire the "necessary package of knowledge" and the gates to a carefree life will swing open! In fact, at best, they will send you banal theories that are available on the Internet for free and have nothing to do with real life, or offers to invest in dubious projects. Someone will definitely work as a result, but it is unlikely that it will be you.

How to  proceed ?
If you do decide to invest, invest as much money as you can afford to lose. In the worst case, pay for a lesson in how you shouldn't have done. Search Google for information about the company and its proposed investments. Beware of transactions with cryptocurrencies, stocks and gold on trading platforms: they may well be legal, but still, 9 out of 10 newbies usually lose all their money due to lack of experience.

Sudden lottery win
The good news comes to your e-mail that you have won a million or another impressive amount in the lottery of randomly selected people. Only one thing is required of you - to pay for the transfer of money to your account ... Unfortunately, this is a "scam" and the money you transferred will end up in the pockets of bad guys or girls.

How to proceed?
If you do not remember that you participated in the lottery, immediately unsubscribe from such mailings and delete the correspondence. If you did enter the lottery, check who the sender of the letter is and contact the company to make sure you really won. Remember that scammers, as a rule, profit from human naivety and greed, and winnings are always given out without any payment - on the spot or by transfer.

Please update your details
The purpose of this scheme is to convince you to share valuable information, such as your card details, in order to supposedly verify your identity and update your details. These letters usually look like official messages sent by banks or other institutions.

How to proceed?
Look at the sender's address and check if it contains extra letters or numbers. If the message looks suspicious, delete it and report the fraudulent attempt to the real institution. Try not to open suspicious files, as even the most modern antivirus programs sometimes fail to identify cyberattacks.

Strange content from a friend
Having gained access to the user's e-mail, scammers can send messages to his friends and acquaintances, offering to open a link or an application containing a virus. If you do this, fraudsters will gain access to both your email and its contents. Usually, these messages are very short and laconic, like, "open this, you look funny here" or "look at the picture I found on the Internet."

How to proceed?
Before opening obscure and suspicious files, contact the sender. Usually he does not even know that he has fallen into the trap of scammers and his email is used to find new victims.

Social media quizzes
Quizzes and tests asking you to find out what kind of animal or celebrity you look like are often created to get your data and then use it in fraudulent schemes.

How to proceed?
As much as you want to know what Hollywood star you look like, avoid unknown sources and don't use the content they contain.

Fake news sites
Fake news sites not only litter the Internet and, consequently, our brain with all sorts of nonsense and lies, but can also be a trap with ads, opening which, you will automatically download malicious software to your computer.

How to proceed?
Read reliable and trusted sources and do not get fooled by loud headlines on obscure sites. Think critically.

These are not all fraudulent schemes used on the Internet, so be careful and carefully evaluate each of your actions.