🚨 “Are Bengal cats legal in Australia?” Type that into Google Search and you’re in trouble. Hackers are creating fake websites and hijacking real ones to land at the top for popular search terms. No kidding, cat sites are a big target. Once you’re there, the goal is to get you to download a zip file. Safety first: Never download anything from a website you stumbled upon.
Tired of all the junk in your inbox? Create a burner email address
Though texting someone is more convenient than opening your email app and composing a message, email carries a formality. It’s still the king of professional correspondence, especially in an office setting.
Do you CC or BCC? Knowing the difference and the proper time to use each is important. Tap or click here for a rundown on these email tools and avoid committing a digital faux pas.
Whenever you give out your email address, you open yourself to junk mail and more. Whether you’re signing up for a new account or emailing a company with a question, they can start flooding your inbox once they have your address. This is where a burner email comes in handy. Read on for more.
Does it ever stop?
Junk is one unfortunate constant when it comes to email. Whether you bought something from a retailer’s website, used a digital coupon, entered a contest, or signed up for a membership, it seems inevitable that your inbox will be inundated with spam.
Aside from marketing emails, you may also receive malicious messages containing malware and links that lead to fake websites. How about using a different email address to verify an account or sign up with a new app?
Burner email addresses are disposable and can be used instead of your primary ones. You can avoid countless spammy emails and ads this way. It sure beats going through your inbox, unsubscribing and marking messages as spam.
We gathered five services to help keep the clutter out of your inbox.
1. Temp Mail
Temp Mail provides you with a temporary, anonymous and disposable email address. You don’t need to register an account for the free version.
The service doesn’t automatically delete your temporary email address (that’s up to you), and you can’t send emails, but you get the benefits of a burner account. Emails are stored for about two hours before they’re automatically deleted.
Go to temp-mail.org to get your free burner email through your browser. You can also get Temp Mail for iOS and Android devices.
Warning: Fake ChatGPT plugin is stealing Facebook logins
ChatGPT has only been around for a few months, but the artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot is all the rage. Unfortunately, criminals use its popularity to spread malware and steal personal information.
Read on for details on the latest fake ChatGPT plugin created to steal your Facebook logins.
Scammers are using your TV against you to get you to pay up
Anything that connects to the internet can be hacked. However, many people wrongly assume that smart TVs are immune. Tap or click here for four vital steps to protect your online accounts from hackers and scammers.
While there isn’t much personal information stored on your TV, hackers can cause trouble in other ways. A new trend is thieves forcing pop-ups onto unsuspecting victims’ smart TVs. If you fall for them, you’ll end up handing your money to crooks.
This Amazon phishing scheme is stealing passwords
Amazon Web Services (AWS) forms the backbone of many online businesses as it’s an on-demand cloud platform that offers storage, website hosting, IT infrastructure, developer tools and more. Essentially, it’s a one-stop shop for anything you need to run your online company or service.
Be careful what you click — Scammers are hiding malware in ads
The most convenient (and often the fastest) way to find information on a business or service is through a search engine. Google is at the top, with billions of daily queries. But not all results can be trusted. Tap or click here for our search engine comparison: Google vs. Startpage vs. DuckDuckGo vs. Bing.
Scary new malware takes over your browser to show you fake search results
Scammers usually launch online attacks to grab your personal information or steal your money. But not all scams are so straightforward. Criminals employ sneaky tactics to drive traffic towards advertisements or fake websites where they get a cut of the profit.
Protect your money! Fake crypto wallets spotted for iPhone and Android
Cryptocurrency is risky enough without having to worry about scams. No matter which one you choose, you will deal with volatile values. Throw in some crooks, and the risk goes up exponentially.
Social media is a goldmine for scammers to find new victims. Now, fake crypto ads are circulating on Facebook and other platforms. The ads use images of well-known industry leaders to lure people into buying crypto that doesn’t exist. Tap or click here to check out our report.
Microsoft is emailing out gift cards (No, it's not a scam)
Phishing scams usually try to entice victims to click on malicious links. Those links can lead to fake websites where scammers hope you will enter personal details or banking information for them to steal. Tap or click here to see a recent fake invoice from Microsoft scam.
Don't be fooled! Fake Netflix apps are spreading malware
Everybody loves a good bargain, coupon or discount code. But it has once again become clear that you can’t trust everything you find online or receive in a text message.
There are plenty of fake apps and services that will do nothing but steal your details, and it’s getting worse. Criminals responsible are becoming craftier, spoofing real websites and services and loading them with malware. Tap or click here for details on spoofing.
Before you scan a QR code to read a menu or track a package, read this warning
Quick Response codes, better known as QR codes, are those blotchy squares that look like a barcode that had a rough night out. Similar in function, they serve as a quick way for people to scan them with their camera to access a web link.
Looking for cleaning products? Beware of fake Clorox and Lysol websites
Knock-offs and fake products are everywhere. Live in a major metro area? There are probably different streets or shops in your city that are notorious for selling fakes — and you can easily find these items for sale across the internet, too.
Use Office 365? Watch for this tricky new phishing attack
Microsoft Office has become a major target for cybercriminals in recent months. You need a Microsoft Account to log in to Office, and stolen accounts can be used by hackers to lock you out of your PC or access your email and cloud storage.
How to spot 10 common election scams
The 2020 election is less than a month away. With millions of people voting, it’s a perfect opportunity for thieves to trick people and take their money.
How are crooks targeting victims? Phone and email scams are the most common tactics. But this year, they’re also leveraging social media to spread disinformation. Tap or click here to see why so many voters want social media shut down during the election.
Check your phone! Surveillance firm accused of spoofing Facebook to spread spyware
You might think malware is the kind of thing you only run into while visiting the seedier parts of the web. Mainstream websites, you tell yourself, wouldn’t have the same kind of risks as the Dark Web or free movie websites, right? Well, you’d be half right. Mainstream sites are usually safe — as long as the ones you’re visiting are the real deal.