Scam alerts Archives - Page 29 of 51

Scam alert: Use a dating app? It’s probably selling your personal info.

Posted on March 7, 2022

Do you use a dating app on your phone or tablet?

If so, it’s probably selling or otherwise sharing your personal info with dozens of other companies.

According to this ABC News report from 2020, the Norwegian Consumer Council has discovered that “serious privacy infringements” are being perpetrated by the companies behind several of the world’s most popular dating apps.

And guess what? Many dating apps are still doing it.

In short, the apps are selling or otherwise sharing the personal info from user accounts with at least 135 other third-party companies and services.

[Read more…]

Scam alert: Beware the many ‘Ellen DeGeneres’ scams on Facebook

Posted on February 27, 2022

As you probably know, lots of celebrities use Facebook to keep in touch with their fans and share news of upcoming events with them.

Unfortunately, lots of scammers are busy piggy-backing off the success of those celebrities by cloning their accounts and using those fake accounts to scam the celebrities’ fans.

One of the scammers’ favorite targets is Ellen DeGeneres because of her well-known penchant for giving things away, both on her show and via her social media accounts. [Read more…]

Scam alert: Don’t fall for the ‘One Ring’ phone scam

Posted on January 19, 2022

Ricks’ Tech Tips Newsletter

There’s a dangerous telephone scam that pops up every now and then, and right now the scammers are back to working it pretty hard.

It’s called the “One Ring” phone scam, and if you fall for it you could end up having $15 or more added to your next phone bill (that’s $15+ for every time you fall for the scam).

This scam works something like this: [Read more…]

Scam alert: Don’t click links in emails or on social media about the Olympics!

Posted on January 12, 2022

The Olympic Games are a worldwide spectacle that attract the attention of billions of people around the globe during the two week period when the games are underway.

Unfortunately, that two week period is also one of the most lucrative times for hackers and scammers to practice their dirty deeds.

Chances are you’ve already received emails and seen social media posts with links to Olympics related web pages and videos. If so, I hope you haven’t clicked on the links because virtually all of those emails and web pages are fraudulent and dangerous. [Read more…]

Scam alert: Those ‘Is it you in this video?’ messages are dangerous scams

Posted on December 22, 2021

If it seems like the scammers and hoaxsters never take a break from Facebook, it’s because they really don’t.

At any point in time there are numerous scammers sitting around trying to think up new ways to scam innocent Facebook users.

And as is usually the case, there’s a particularly dangerous scam making the rounds right now via Facebook Messenger.

But luckily, as dangerous as this scam is, it’s extremely easy to recognize and avoid it when you see it.

[Read more…]