Here are simple things you can do to make sure you are not being scammed:
- Listen to a caller on the other side of the line. Mind if they act professionally.
- If you get an ad for something or a link make sure it is real. It is recomended to go to your browser and find thing yourself instead of logging your data on fake page.
- If you got a call from bank or something important hang up and call back to real bank number. Scammers can change their caller ID so it looks like your bank is calling you.
- A scammer wants to get information out of you in a short amount of time while rushing.
- Bank or any institution has does not need or has no rights to ask you for card numbers, personal details, passwords or passcodes, PIN codes and other vulnerable data.
- A scammer usually want you to install an app to your device. It is usually remote access softwere. So scammers can use your device remotely. They usually say that a robot or IT support will connect.
- Offical institution will not call you and hurry about anything.
- Urgency and Fear Tactics: Scammers claim your account is suspended, a delivery failed, or you face arrest unless you act immediately.
- “Too Good to Be True” Offers: Unbelievably low prices on luxury goods, free gift cards, or easy money for minimal work are nearly always fake.
- Unusual Payment Methods: Being asked to pay via gift cards, cryptocurrency, wire transfers (like Western Union/MoneyGram), or peer-to-peer apps (Zelle, Venmo) to an unverified person is a major red flag.
- Impersonation and Spoofing: Emails, texts, or calls pretending to be your bank, the IRS/government, or tech support often use fake logos, slightly altered domain names, or spoofed caller IDs.
- Unsolicited Links and QR Codes: Messages asking you to click a link to “verify” information, log into your account, or scan a QR code in an unexpected email or ad usually lead to phishing sites.
- Requests for Sensitive Info: Legitimate companies and government agencies will never ask for your passwords, full SSN, PINs, or 2FA/OTP codes over the phone, text, or email.
Do not be afraid to do anything when you are in call. Real institutions and employers understand this problem. If a person on the other side of the line gets gets angry or begs you not to hang up when you say “I will call you back, I need to hang up” person may be a scammer.
We have a lot of different scams nowdays… From ones you can recognize in seconds to scams that you don’t know about. Scams are still developing, from social engineering (psychological manipulation) to phising attacks and also technical tricks and AI tools.
- Phising: You get an email (for example your password should be changed and updated). You than enter your login data like username and password in the wrong website with wrong link, so that’s how passwords are stolen.
To defend from fishing:
a) Check the email adress from who you actually got an email. Do it letter per letter as there can be one character can be wrong. Attackers usualy use “rn” for “m” – yes it was easy to spot it now but in long emails it is hard.
b) Enable 2FA. If you do and someone knows your password they cannot get to your account.
2. Smishing: If you get a message from for example delivery service or any service. In message is written that you need to pay something or you won’t get something or you will get punished if you don’t pay in a short time, that’s smishing. Attackers mentally force you to pay something you probably don’t even know about. You see amount is low so you pay it. Everything seems normal, but theft happens later.
How to defend from Smishing?
If you get a message don’t click the link you got. Go to your browser and check it yourself. Go to website of a company and check, what is happening. If you need help call support, but not support in the message but support, provided on a real site.
Block the Smishing number. Never enter any details into a website you got from Smishing website.
3. Vishing
Vishing is an attack, when you get a call, for example from bank, or microsoft support. Some people say attackers can change their Caller ID to be seen as a bank ar Microsoft support. So pay antention and be careful.
How to defend from vishing?
a) Scammers are usually a little unprofesional (they make jokes when they work, sometimes they are angry…) so if you repeat same mistake over and over, they willnget angry and probably use bad words… That’s how you spot them.
b) They demand a lot of personal details. If you register to a service, they have your details in service. Scammers don’t know that details, so they are asking a lot.
c) A real support would never call you and say something like “Your bank account was hacked” or “Your computer has a virus”. That are scammers. Block them.
d) I recomend, that if you get to know something, that happened about your bank account, don’t act on phone line but go to bank.
4. investments and crypto scams
Here the story is very diferent. Scammers sometimes want you to pay them in crypto, beacose in crypto there is no ID verification, so the money can’t be tracked or can be very hard. That’s why if you see someone reqesting payment in crypto I don’t recomend you use crypto.
How it starts?
Someone contacts you or an ad is shown on your computer. It’s a deal you can’t belive it’s possible. People do not think twice and they just go for it…
Now I know that scam very well, because I have saved two people, who nearly became victums. This ads are more likely to be posted on social media.
THE POINT: The prices of something are unbelivebly low. You buy them but you just got in trubble. Sometimes they can even see your account in real time.
You can see the scam mif you check if company’s documentation is published on offical sites (like govermant sites).
5.Inverted Phising
This attack is that unknown, that 99 % of people would fall on it. It is kind of simple, but so quick.
If you sell stuff on internet this attack is usual. You get buyer of something you are buying. Buyer says that they will order courier. So the buyer (attacker) sends you a phishing site, where you enter your details so attacker can ”pay you by the courier˝ but they got your details so it leads in the same way as usual.
6. Love scams (romance scams)
That attack is usual and for many people very hard to ignore. The scam contains a person, that protends to be in love with you. They even send their photos that are usually fake. Their goal is to get your information (name, passwords bank details and more…) so they can acsess your things. Than they usually block you and use your stuff and money. They can demend money and if you don’t pay they post your info and pictures you don’t want to end up online.
SO HOW TO DEFEND?
Yes I know for a lot of people emotions like love are breakless but it is important to be safe. If you don’t know a person in real life don’t start conversations that could end up as love. I do not recomend meeting people you don’t know in real life. That means if someone you added on socials wants to meet you, but you don’t know them you can get attacked physically on the meeting place. And those scams are so powerful that you can’t even recognize it sometimes.
7. Scams with changed indetity (like CEO scams)
Scammers protend they are CEO and they will refound you with the transaction you didn’t even pay. He lies in your head. So they get your card details and personal informatio
TO DEFEND:
Pay antention and check every bill.
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