Protecting against fraud scams

With coronavirus-related fraud attacks on the increase, Michael Reitblat, CEO and Co-Founder of Forter (www.forter.com), the leader in e-commerce fraud prevention, outlines how people can protect themselves from fraud, and who within society is most vulnerable to scams.

“In order to be more prepared and protected from Coronavirus-related fraud and scams, individuals should be more aware of emails they receive with subject lines connected to the virus outbreak.  Make sure to verify the sender and that the email address is from a known or familiar domain or business account.  Fraudsters are looking to capitalise on increased concerns and messages with Coronavirus in the topic or subject line, and are looking for vulnerabilities to exploit.  Likewise, if working from home or open wireless networks (cafes or restaurants if they are still open), these connections will be less secure and more likely able to be penetrated by nefarious actors,” says Reitblat.

“Social engineering scams (such as phishing attacks) most often target an older demographic.  These individuals are typically less aware of security concerns and are also less likely to monitor the senders of emails that could be related to the messages regarding "updates" on the virus outbreak.”

Everyone needs to be watchful as fraudsters and criminals leverage crisis situations to take advantage of unsuspecting consumers, employees and those most vulnerable in society.

IT