In 2009, millions of innocent consumers were harassed, defrauded, and robbed of valuable personal information that may have done serious damage to their credit and privacy for years to come. Some of the most memorable scams of 2009 and possible threats for 2010 are:
1. Spoofing Attacks – Scammers ask you to visit a website by pretending to be an official source, and rob you of your personal information.
2. Economy Related Scams – Scammers use the economy and enticing terms like loans, debt relief, etc. to get you to fall for their scam.
3. Work at Home Scams – Do you want to earn fast money while working at home? These are the type of things scammers will say to get you to participate in their scam. They most always ask for an upfront fee.
4. Social Networking Scams – The continued popularity of social networking sites is a target to scammers and malware makers looking to spread viruses, hack into people’s personal accounts, or con people out of money.
5. Classified Ad and Auction Scams – Although Craigslist can ebay can be a good way to find things you are looking for, it is also a good place for scammers to plot.
This WingSwept article was inspired by one by Trend Micro.