Amex, Amazon, Netflix, Costco, and Walmart – Top Phishing Scams This Week
Author: Trend Micro
We’ve found a large number of scams that you should watch out for, including ones relating to American Express, Amazon, Netflix, Costco, and Walmart. Would you have been able to spot all the scams?
Phishing Scams
Impersonating famous brands and companies, scammers will send out phishing links (usually via text message or email) and try to entice you into opening them with various lies. As seen below, these phishing links will lead to malicious websites containing fake log-in pages.
American Express Phishing
We’ve reported extensively on phishing emails that pose as banks, and this week we’ve detected multiple fake security alert emails purporting to be from American Express:
Falsely claiming that you need to validate your account, the scammers prompt you to click on the embedded link, which will take you to a fake American Express log-in page (often difficult to tell apart from the legitimate one).
Scammers can record all the log-in information you’ve submitted on these fake pages. With it, they can take control of your account and use if for their own criminal activities. Don’t get scammed!
Stay Away from Phishing Scams — Trend Micro Check
Trend Micro Check is a browser extension and mobile app for detecting scams, phishing attacks, malware, and dangerous links — and it’s FREE!
After you’ve pinned the Trend Micro Check extension, it will block dangerous sites automatically! (Available on Safari, Google Chrome, and Microsoft Edge.)
You can also download the Trend Micro Check mobile app for 24/7 automatic scam and spam detection and filtering. (Available for Android and iOS).
Amazon Security Alert Scam
Similar tricks are also seen in other phishing attempts. For example, we’ve observed some fake Amazon security alerts this week:
- Information We have detected suspicious activity on your account and have locked it as a precaution. Click the link below to unlock your account: <URL> If you do not verify your identity before 24 hours, your Paypal account will be terminated. Sincerely, Paypal Team
As mentioned, the link will take you to a fake log-in page where you could expose all your sensitive credentials:
Sample fake Amazon log-in page
Netflix Phishing
We’ve seen far too many Netflix phishing scams before. Don’t click on the links from random text messages!
- [ Netflix ] Your Netflix membership has been ended because we’re having some trouble with your current account information. Validate your account information by click link bellow: <URL> Best Regards, The Netflix team
Phishing links will also take you to online survey pages that state you can claim a gift by filling out an online questionnaire. Below are some examples:
Costco Gift Card Scam
Costco is one of the most impersonated brands in phishing scams. Featuring a $90 gift card, scammers will lure you into taking an online survey to claim a gift:
You will be taken to a scam survey page and asked to submit your personal information. Again, it will end up in scammers’ hands to be used for other cybercrime. Don’t let them!
Walmart Delivery Scam
If you receive a Walmart text message about a delivery, please don’t click on the attached link:
- Hi James your shipment was delivered to the drop-off point in . View where you can pick-up here: <URL>
You’ll likely end up exposing personal information on another fake survey page, including your address and credit card details. Be careful!
Protect Yourself from Phishing Scams
- Pay close attention to URLs — are they legitimate?
- Double-check the sender’s mobile number/email address.
- Free gifts are always a major red flag.
- Go to the official website/application instead of using links from unknown sources.
- Never click on links or attachments from unknown sources. Use Trend Micro Check to surf the web safely (it’s FREE!).
- Change your password as soon as possible if you’ve already clicked on a suspicious link. Consider using our online Password Generator (also FREE!) to create strong, tough-to-hack passwords.
- Finally, add an extra layer of protection to your devices with Trend Micro Maximum Security. Its Web Threat Protection, Ransomware Protection, Anti-phishing, and Anti-spam Protection will help you combat scams and cyberattacks. Click the button below to give it a try.
If you’ve found this article an interesting and/or helpful read, please SHARE it with friends and family to help keep the online community secure and protected. Also, please consider leaving a comment or like below. Stay safe, folks!
This article was published in collaboration with Trend Micro
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