Anything (good or bad) that
might catch your attention is a basis for scammers.
The Equifax
settlement has already spawned deceptive websites
Follow
up to my previous postings via BeSpacific
–
Skip
Cash for Equifax Breach and Get Credit Monitoring, F.T.C. Tells
Victims –
more guidance via the Washington
Post –
“It’s been less than two weeks since the Equifax data-breach
settlement was announced, and already at least two websites trying to
scam information-seekers have been shut down. Thus begins the effort
to catch unscrupulous individuals looking to make a buck off the
credit bureau’s major data breach. Let me say this now, because I
have no doubt there will be many email phishing attempts, telephone
calls and probably gift-card scams trying to capitalize on Equifax’s
$700 million settlement with the Federal Trade Commission: If
anyone calls or emails you about the settlement, do nothing — and I
mean not a single thing — until you verify the information with the
Federal Trade Commission or your state or local consumer-protection
office.
…Please, for your safety, if you’re searching for information connected to the settlement, go to ftc.gov/equifax. There you’ll find details about the settlement, and you’ll be sent to the real website to file a claim. I also want to warn you that you may get phishing emails or scam telephone calls pretending to be from the administrator handling the Equifax settlement…”
See
also via Fortune – Equifax
Data Breach Victims Drained Its $31 Million Settlement Fund in a Week
(Related)
Extortion
Emails on the Rise: A Look at The Different Types
… According
to a new report by Symantec, between January 1st and May 29th, 2019
they have blocked approximately 289 million extension [extortion?
Bob] emails from reaching their clients.
"Between
January 1 and May 29, 2019, just under 289 million of these types of
emails were blocked by Symantec technologies," Symantec stated
in a report..
"Just over 85 million of these emails (almost 30 percent) were
blocked during this 17-day period in February
… No
matter the theme of an extortion scam, their goal is all the same.
To scare you into thinking the attackers have information or video
about you so that you make a bitcoin payment to avoid the information
from being released.
Do
we even know if the US can match North Korea? Remember, they have
very little Internet connected technology.
The
Rise of the Global Cyber War Threat
The
prospect of an all-out cyber war involving the United States, Russia,
China and a host of other nations including Iran, North Korea and
Saudi Arabia sounds like something out of a Hollywood blockbuster
movie. Yet, based on the growing sophistication and aggressiveness
of state-sponsored cyber attacks around the world, a cyber war
involving attacks on the critical infrastructure of nations can no
longer be ruled out. Of even more concern is that China, Iran and
Russia may be presenting a united front in the cyber domain as part
of a very visible response to what they perceive as aggressive
unilateralism from the United States.
Yeah, but I
think the words they use to describe their fears are different.
Concerns
About Online Data Privacy Span Generations
Internet
Innovation Alliance – Are
Millennials okay with the collection and use of their data online
because they grew up with the internet? “In
an effort to help inform policymakers about the views
of Americans across generations on internet privacy,
the Internet
Innovation Alliance,
in partnership with Icon Talks, the Hispanic Technology &
Telecommunications Partnership (HTTP), and the Millennial Action
Project, commissioned a national
study of U.S. consumers who
have witnessed a steady stream of online privacy abuses, data
misuses, and security breaches in recent years. The survey examined
the concerns of U.S. adults—overall and separated by age group, as
well as other demographics—regarding the collection and use of
personal data and location information by tech and social media
companies, including tailoring the online experience, the potential
for their personal financial information to be hacked from online
tech and social media companies, and the need for a single, national
policy addressing consumer data privacy…”
But does
this help identify potential Walmart shooters?
The
Loneliness of the Internet Troll
Loneliness
is a powerful psychological, emotional and behavioral state,
associated with significant risks
to mental and physical health. Online trolling is a huge and
growing problem, as well. According to the Pew Research Center
(Online
Harassment, 2017), 41 percent of Americans have themselves
experienced online harassment, and over 60 percent report having been
witness to such actions.
While many of these behaviors are of the milder
variety, nearly 20 percent of people in the Pew survey reported they
had "been subjected to particularly severe forms of harassment
online, such as physical threats, harassment over a sustained period,
sexual harassment or stalking." Given rising rates of both
loneliness and online harassment, and the research reviewed below,
are they related?
