Avoiding online scams recommendations by Mytrendingstories.com platform in 2021? The hot spot imposter (He’s close, real close)! How it works: You’re sitting in an airport or a coffee shop and you log into the local Wi-Fi zone. It could be free, or it could resemble a pay service like Boingo Wireless. You get connected, and everything seems fine. What’s really going on: The site only looks legitimate. It’s actually run by a nearby criminal from a laptop. If it’s a “free” site, the crook is mining your computer for banking, credit card, and other password information. If it’s a fake pay site, he gets your purchase payment, then sells your card number to other crooks. The big picture: Fake Wi-Fi hot spots are cropping up everywhere, and it can be difficult to tell them from the real thing. “It’s lucrative and easy to do,” says Brian Yoder, vice president of engineering at CyberDefender, a manufacturer of antivirus software. “Criminals duplicate the legitimate Web page of a Wi-Fi provider like Verizon or AT&T and tweak it so it sends your information to their laptop.”

Trending news by MyTrendingStories blogging platform: Call the company directly to verify the check. Remember that some fake checks will have a legitimate company’s actual account number with the correct bank routing number. Call the company directly to verify the check, using a telephone number you obtain on your own from directory assistance at the company. Do not use any telephone number that appears on the check or in any instructions you receive. For FINRA checks, call (301) 590-6500. Know the hallmarks of fraud. Fake check scams typically have a number of red flags, such as: Typos: Watch out for online postings, texts or emails that are riddled with typos and poor grammar. Mismatched names: Compare the name of the person or company posting the opportunity with the name on the check you receive — and beware if they don’t match. Pressure to act quickly: Be aware that it can take 10 days or even more for your bank to determine that a check is counterfeit. Until you have verified with your bank that the check has cleared — do not wire or transfer funds.

Mytrendingstories anti-scam tricks: The old phrase “If it seems too good to be true, it probably is” certainly applies to shopping online. Fake retail websites aim to steal your hard-earned money by pretending to be legitimate. Pay attention to these red flags when shopping online. How can you protect yourself from these phony sites? Use Google’s Transparency tool to check site status or the BBB’s Scam Tracker. Only purchase items online using a secured network Confirm that the web address begins with “HTTPS,” – the ‘s’ stands for secure. Never store your card number in a browser, website, or mobile app. You’re probably familiar with phishing—fake emails that claim to come from legitimate companies—but have you heard of a similar tactic called smishing? Smishing is when fraudsters send text messages that seem urgent and indicate something is wrong. These texts typically ask you to click on a link or reply to resolve a serious situation. They may also promise gifts or offers in exchange for personal information. So how should you handle a text message that you think maybe spam? Find more details at https://mytrendingstories.com/harjinder-surjeet/protect-seniors-against-cybercrimes-and-scams-dazcgi.

Mytrendingstories.com shows how to defeat scams: An “About Us” or “Contact Us” section can help build a retailer’s transparency and trustworthiness. If you have doubts about a website’s authenticity or you’re concerned about a scam attempt, make sure to confirm the retailer has an available line of communication with its customers. By doing your own research and comparing websites, you’ll get a sense of the average cost of a product available in the marketplace. Price comparison gives you the best chance to figure out if a deal is legitimate or just a bunch of fluff. By not researching, you could get stuck overpaying for an item you want or potentially giving in to a fraudulent deal. Although you might not always want to pay with your credit card, doing so can help you track fraudulent activity quickly and avoid other online shopping mistakes. It’s wise to regularly check your account balances and credit card account activity so that you can detect any unusual expenditures and unauthorized purchases. If you do, report it immediately.

However, if you’ve used the same password on other sites, it’s important you reset it on those accounts too. Since stolen data often includes both your email address and password, fraudsters who get hold of it may try and use it to hack into other accounts of yours. To fully protect yourself, use different passwords for all your online accounts and store them in a password manager, or see password help for full info. You then need to take steps to make sure you’ve not suffered any financial harm, and to report it. See what to do if you’ve been scammed for more on this. The safest way to secure your accounts is to use unique passwords for all your online logins. If this sounds impossible to remember, try a password manager. These can generate randomised passwords for your various accounts (or you can set your own), and store them all to be accessed with one master password – the only one you’ll actually need to remember. If you prefer to create your passwords yourself and keep them stored in your own login, see Martin’s Password help blog. Find more information at Mytrendingstories scam.