Scammers Are Out Full Force

Discussion in 'Gadgets & Tech Talk' started by Kate Ellery, May 20, 2022.

  1. Kate Ellery

    Kate Ellery Supreme Member
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    I received a email yesterday relating to a purchase I made at Super Amart in 2018.
    the email started some of my privacy HAD been breached.
    At the time I purchased a corner lounge however it had problems with the foot piece of the recliners so it was referred to the warranty team to sort out , Amart we’re excellent to deal with at the time.

    So I spent most of last evening checking on my security for my email name and address/ banking as
    Super Amart . (Huge furniture shop chain ) had their computers hacked , and to date they only believe (the warranty department / section computers effected)

    Anyway to cut a long story short , the accounts for any warranty claims ……so anyone in my position ….MAY BE effected by the computer hacking.

    So these low life would have my full name / address / email address / and possibly my banking details.?

    I’m very wary of scams coming via emails / or texts ….so I phoned the number attached to email and it’s a genuine warning / notification / to be on alert for any unusual emails/ phone calls / banking or any changes in my settings ………..which I’ll know within minutes if that was to happen ….cause I messed about changing / checking tonight and every time I updated a setting for my accounts , I’d get a text asking me if it was me? ..if not to phone the bank , or contact my email provider by responding to the text / email or phone.

    I also know the bank is good at detecting any unusual activities as well.

    OMG I was on my computer one evening ordering a design for my embroidery sewing machine ….and before I even got the chance to pay for it the bank called me and asked that I didn’t proceed with the order as the site was “not recommend” by the bank to do business with …so “big brother” is watching all the time.

    I’m not panicking just being very wary / on alert of any emails/ texts ( nothing new) I’m always wary of anything from any unknown senders anyway.

    Anyway I’m not sure I can do anything more than I’ve already done by checking security settings
    in banking / personal info
     
    #1
    Last edited: May 20, 2022
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  2. Ken Anderson

    Ken Anderson Senior Staff
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    If anyone were genuinely concerned about identity theft, online and offline stores would be required to give us the option not to have our identifying information stored beyond the time when our payment has gone through. Some online stores give you the option of not storing your login information on the site, but they still store your name, address, credit card number, expiration date, and I forget what that three-digit number they always want is called. We should have the option of having this information stored on their site if we want, for our convenience in future purchases, or not having it stored, which would simply mean that we have to enter our info in every time we make a purchase.
     
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  3. Kate Ellery

    Kate Ellery Supreme Member
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    Thanks @Ken Anderson
    I’ve never shopped online with this store ….so why do they still have my info stored ? I purchased the lounge in store,2018 as well as all communication regarding the faulty recliner action was in store …no calls just person to person. The lounge cost me $3.000

    It would be great if anyone can offer any further action I can take protect myself against the cyber attack as Amart has described it.

    Should I contact my bank ? ? regarding the breach ?

    I’m a bit annoyed as the email from them came with a genuine link to scam watch Australia however that page contains nothing at all in relation to the crime
     
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  4. Thomas Stillhere

    Thomas Stillhere Very Well-Known Member
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    I purchased a lit keyboard last year and somehow scammers sent out phishing emails to people who had reviewed the product. This isn't my first rodeo and I knew from the very beginning it was a scam because I had never sent a complaint about the keyboard. I just spam everything I know that is trash and never ever ever ever open it. I ran a full scan today napped for 3 hours before it finished. I had 6 items that had to be deleted, no big deal because it is automatically stopped. I have to say windows 7 has been one of the most secure and stable systems from microsoft and it has been very forgiving. I have 3 other machines with 10 and it is so intrusive you have to just about disable everything in it to use the machine without constant time wasting. I use a special tool from malwarebytes to check for browser attacks and popups that might make it thru the protections. I read some really bad things about windows 11 so be prepared for some really illegal and intrusive crap from microsoft for that one. If I really had to I would just migrate to Linux and be done with it, might as well because I never finish anything I am working on. Microsoft is really big on telementry backdoors. There is a reason they gave win 10 for free for years. I believe they fell in with the guberment to taint their systems so they could be spied on thru back doors. This happened after 9/11 while they were still building their latest systems 7 8 and 10. We lost more freedoms than can be counted thanks to George Bush and his illegal patriot act.
     
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  5. Mary Stetler

    Mary Stetler Veteran Member
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    Can you freeze your credit in Australia? Here there is a process at the three big credit bureaus. I had just written a long reply about this but it was lost somewhere.
     
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  6. Mary Stetler

    Mary Stetler Veteran Member
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    #6
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  7. Kate Ellery

    Kate Ellery Supreme Member
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    At the advice of the bank I charged my daily spending limit to the lowest possible amount as well as my password. (S)
    The bank is fully aware if anyone tried to use my banking details or change my passwords as they have flagged my account so I feel,I’ve done all I can do to protect my banking details.
     
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    Last edited: May 26, 2022
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  8. Kate Ellery

    Kate Ellery Supreme Member
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    This a new scam TO ME …..got it this morning,

    since when has a huge online computer security company had to use a gmail account :eek:;)

    ….how stupid do the scammers think people are ..I always check where the email has come from and this one came from a gmail account.


    I’ve never subscribed to Norton computer security

    F1D46378-10E0-4544-A927-B4380435CE2F.jpeg
     
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    Last edited: Aug 9, 2022
  9. Mary Stetler

    Mary Stetler Veteran Member
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    Yup. I get emails from banks I don't have accounts at, Paypal which I don't use and I win prizes if I just do a survey or click on a link, which I don't. I get robo calls telling me of purchases at amazon that I did not make, just call if it was not me, which I don't. We don't answer the phone much anymore and my delete button is wearing out.o_O
     
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  10. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    It's amazing how much fraud can be acted out so quickly at so little cost.

    Good job on paying attention to those email addresses, Kate!
     
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  11. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    I've gotten two texts in the past week that "my Amazon account has been suspended." :rolleyes:
     
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  12. Marie Mallery

    Marie Mallery Veteran Member
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    Us too, we don't answer unless we recognize the caller.
     
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  13. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    I use a security program from Malwarebytes. Every so often they send emails containing articles on technology security. Today's email had a story of an innocent guy getting scammed, and a story of scammers getting screwed. They are related in that both took advantage of manipulating electronic payment data.

    Innocent Guy Getting Scammed
    A British man (Chris Gray) with an IT degree advertised an expensive cell phone for sale. This was in in-person transaction. The scammer showed up to Mr. Gray's house, decided to buy the phone, and made the payment transfer on his own phone right there in front of Mr. Gray. The scammer showed Mr. Gray the transaction confirmation on his phone, which seemed to be legit...he used a method with no ability to reverse the transaction and with no charge-backs (think Zelle.) When Mr. Gray logged on to his own bank account and saw that the funds had not yet appeared, he did an internet search and saw that sometimes such transfers can take up to 2 hours to process...so being assured that such a transfer could not be halted or reversed once it was initiated, he let the "buyer" take the phone and leave. As it turns out, the buyer had a fake app on his phone and no financial transfer ever took place. Mr. Gray lost out.

    Apparently there is a growing issue with fake payment apps being used this way. Just because someone shows you that they initiated electronic payment does not mean that it is legit, even when you see the "completed transaction" right on their screen.

    Scammers Getting Screwed
    This one has a happy ending. It involves a ransomware gang. Ransomware is when your computer is taken over (locked up) by a 3rd party who demands payment in order to give you the tools (a decryption key) to unlock it. Dutch police tricked a ransomware gang (DeadBolt) into releasing 150 decryption keys (the victim was a large business) by providing DeadBolt with evidence of payment being made via Bitcoin. This was a valid Bitcoin transaction, but because of the high volume of Bitcoin transactions being processed at any given time, completion of the transfer can be sluggish. The police were able to induce DeadBolt to immediately release the decryption keys, at which point the police cancelled the Bitcoin transaction before it was completed.

    Score 1 for the good guys. What's interesting is that this exposure even exists when using Bitcoin.
     
    #13
    Last edited: Oct 24, 2022
  14. Teresa Levitt

    Teresa Levitt Veteran Member
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    mr gray should've said...$cash only$..oh well...
     
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  15. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    Yeh, that would be the lesson I would learn. Counterfeiting is tough to get right.
     
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