On the Internet you can find many interesting offers for a wide variety of products. However, in many cases they are actually scams. They can use them as bait to steal your data, passwords or sneak you a virus. It is essential to take precautionary measures and not make mistakes. We are going to tell you about some typical scams that can be used to compromise your security.
Although shopping online is a safe bet, with many options available, it won’t always be that way. You may run into certain problems that will put your security and privacy at risk. It’s up to you to avoid them, since in most cases they will need you to make a mistake to scam you.
Fake offers on the Internet
They can be offers of many kinds. You could come across a technological product, a travel offer, a subscription to a platform… They will always show something eye-catching, with a succulent discount. What they want is to attract attention and trap you into clicking.
Redirects to fake pages
One of the problems with fake offers is that they could redirect you to a fraudulent website that they have created to steal your data. For example, you could see a supposed offer on a social network, such as Facebook, and when you click on it you end up on that fake website, which has nothing to do with the original store.
Once you are inside that website, they might flood you with annoying ads, ask you to log in and steal your passwords, etc. Basically, their goal is to get the victim to end up on that website, and to do so, they will use the strategy of that really good offer as bait.
The product is not what it seems
Another problem is that you might find that the product you bought is not what it seems. You might realize it before paying, and simply close the page and forget about it, but you could also pay and get that unpleasant surprise once you receive the package at home and see that it is nothing like what you expected.
Sometimes, they may make you believe that you are looking at a very good offer to buy a mobile phone from a well-known brand, but in reality what they are selling is a replica, with very inferior features. This will result in disappointment when the package arrives. However, it is not always a scam as such, but rather the victim does not read the model name or specifications well.
They ask you to download malware
This happens especially through social networks and platforms like WhatsApp. They send a supposed offer and, to access it, they ask you to download a file. It can be a document, an image, run an EXE… In all these cases, what you are going to do is download malicious software.
To avoid this problem, it is as simple as not downloading files that may be suspicious. In addition, it is good to have an antivirus that can help detect the entry of malware and eliminate it before it acts.
Discount coupon for stealing data
On the other hand, there is the problem of discount coupons. Sometimes, they will ask you to fill out a form. What they are looking for is to steal your data. They will indicate that they need you to fill out certain information to access this fraudulent product, but it is really a trick to scam you.
Always be wary of these types of strategies. Never put your details on sites you don’t fully trust. It could be a scam and they could use that information against you.
In short, be careful with offers that seem very good on the Internet. There are many scams that can be used against you and it is always a good idea to be prepared to avoid problems. You can always check if a website is reliable to buy from.
