Phishing in 2024 is expected to follow old patterns, with cybercriminals putting new tricks on old scams. Fraudsters use new technologies in addition to the psychological outcome of approaching significant incidents to trick and threaten victims. However, their goal is always the same—to get your financial assets or personal information.
Many scams have a very clear structure. Scammers usually lure you in with promises of winning money or receiving a large amount. However, a frequent method used is to require an advance payment from you before allowing you to access the money. Among the most common types of scams that are going around are pay-to-play schemes.
Some phishing sites use misleading strategies to get access to users’ personal social media and messaging accounts. These websites, which go by numerous names, trick individuals into disclosing sensitive data. As soon as consumers input these details, phishing scammers quickly get it.
A recent phishing attack in Singapore shows the cunning of scammers. They created a complicated phishing site that lured people with promises of New Year payouts from Singapore’s Ministry of Finance.
The fake website successfully mimicked the ministry’s branding to give a false appearance that it was legitimate. Visitors had to enter the information of their Telegram accounts to get the reward.
Phishing scams Using Educational Loan Relief
Scammers take advantage of the people who are hoping for financial help in the ever-changing game of student loan forgiveness regulations. They skilfully create false impressions, profiting on the hope of loan forgiveness while strategising for their own benefit.
Scammers may use phone calls or phoney websites to get your bank account information or Social Security number, so be careful. Using urgent messages, they often force victims into paying a large application fee to apply for fake debt relief. Keep in mind that this is a scam.
Scams involving text messaging have become more common, especially among phone-based scam. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) points this rise in part to texting’s accessibility and ease of use.
According to data from the Federal Trade Commission’s 2022 Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book, Americans lost $330 million to SMS scammers in a single year.
Bank Impersonation Tactics for New Year Gift Frauds
This type of phishing attacks on those who believe in surprises by pretending to be a bank lottery. Scammers create phishing websites that lure people to join giveaways, taking advantage of the cash prizes linked with the New Year’s Eve season.
The real purpose, meanwhile, is to deceive victims into disclosing their bank account information, opening the door for fraud.
Recently, scammers took advantage of the excitement around the new year to target Filipino citizens with their scams. They tricked people into spinning a wheel in the hopes of earning money. Following that, they gave their fake winnings to the customers and asked them to select a bank for the fake cash deposit.
Once victims had made their choice, scammers led them to phishing websites that looked a lot like authentic online banking interfaces. This smart strategy marked the concluding step in the scam, aiming to dupe victims into disclosing their banking credentials and, consequently, their funds.
Crypto Gift Boxes to Attract and Engage Users
A crypto phishing scam is a dishonest plan intended to trick people into divulging their private keys or other sensitive data related to their cryptocurrency holdings. This malicious approach aims to exploit vulnerable users, stealing their digital assets and allowing unauthorised access.
There are a lot of risks in the bitcoin business. Scammers can generate significant earnings by stealing a wallet, even if it contains just a little quantity of bitcoin. As a result, they commit significant effort to creating convincing phishing emails and websites, making it difficult for users to notice any irregularities.
The scammers created a phishing page that looked like the official Courtyard.io offer. With the Courtyard.io platform, users may convert real assets into tokens. The official Courtyard.io website invited visitors to register and get a package with a Pokémon card for New Year’s Eve.
The cybercriminals created a fake webpage that looked just like the original offer. However, users had to attach their cryptocurrency wallet to receive the promised surprise package, which resulted in the unapproved withdrawal of their money.
It’s important to highlight fraudsters’ skillful use of social engineering strategies while talking about them. They trick victims by making a false feeling of urgency, providing customised guidance, or appealing to their fear of losing out on a potentially profitable chance.
Recommendations
In safeguarding yourself from scammers, it primarily involves applying common sense. Popular gifts, like those found in lotteries, sweepstakes, and other competitions, usually attract a lot of interest. The prize presentation is often a well-publicised event, and they come with a thorough set of prize guidelines that may appear enormous.
Verify the validity of the source before taking advantage of any unusual deals. If the company or organisation is trustworthy, authenticate the giveaway promotions by visiting their official website or social media accounts.
Avoid scammers that pose as governmental organisations, charitable organisations, banks, large enterprises, and other groups to trick you with phone calls and emails. A login, password, one-time code, or other piece of personal information should never be shared as these might be used to access your accounts or steal identities.
Keep an eye out for seemingly too-good-to-be-true offers, such as promises to win large quantities of money or expensive items easily. This exercise of caution is especially important when it comes to bitcoin transactions, since scammers are skilled at creating offers that look authentic.
Phishing Tackle offers a free 14-day trial to help train your users to avoid these types of attacks and test their knowledge with simulated attacks using various attack vectors. By focusing on training your users to spot these types of attacks, rather than relying solely on technology, you can ensure that your organisation is better prepared to defend against cyber threats and minimise the impact of any successful attacks.
