If I didn’t know better, I had hit the jackpot recently. Several recent emails trumpeted that I had won a Wal-Mart gift certificate, an expensive electric toothbrush, a $500 gasoline gift card, a 225-piece tool kit, drill bit set and an unspecified package to be delivered.
While I’m indeed fortunate to have a wonderful wife and children, good healthcare and live in a great community, I’m not that lucky when it comes to prizes. The so-called prizes were a wave of “delivery” scams.
How did I know they were scams? 1) I had never entered a contest in hopes of winning these things and 2) They wanted me to click a link to “confirm,” where they were either asking for an upfront fee or financial information. They all bore the same sloppy, amateurish subject line to get my attention.
Since I’m always on the alert for swindles — I’ve been a victim of identity theft multiple times — these emails smelled of old onions. So I didn’t click through the links.
I must have gotten on some list or someone grabbed my email online somewhere. I routinely get warnings from my various cybersecurity programs, so I’m extra vigilant. Then there’s the “dark web,” a shady part of the internet where cyberthieves sell stolen information like email addresses and Social Security numbers. Maybe my email was posted on the “likely sucker” site.
Among other forms of fraud, this is how delivery scams works and how you can avoid them, according to the Federal Trade Commission:
“Sweepstakes, prize, and lottery frauds are among the top scams people report to the FTC. These scams usually start with a call or message that says you’re a winner. (A lie.). They say to get the so-called prize you have to send money or click somewhere to give your information. Don’t. The most recent FTC data shows people reported losing $301 million to this type of fraud. That’s an average loss of $907 per person.”
- Don’t pay to get a prize. Real prizes are free. Anyone who asks you to pay a fee for “taxes,” “shipping and handling charges,” or “processing fees” to get your prize, is a scammer. Stop and walk away.
- Don’t give your financial information. There is absolutely no reason to ever give your bank account or credit card number to claim a prize. If anyone asks for it, it’s a scam.
- Don’t give your personal information. Scammers hope you’ll click on links that will take your personal information or download malware on your device. Delete the message without clicking on the links and don’t respond.
Feeling lucky? Don’t click on the links. It’s not a slot machine; you’re going to lose money every time.
Read the full article here
