Most people think they are safe on the internet as long as they don’t visit “shady” sites, and this is true to some extent: you can play at licensed slots Canada sites, for example, without having to worry about your safety. However, sometimes you can be exposed to a scam even on the sites you think are the safest. Social media platforms are where scams are most common, and you need to learn how to protect yourself from them so you don’t risk your safety. In this article, you can find everything you need to know to protect yourself from social media scams.
Ignore Messages Asking You to Hurry
Those who use social engineering techniques want their target to take action without thinking too much. Therefore, their scam always includes a “warning”. For example, on social media, you may receive a message that your banking information has been stolen and you need to visit a particular site immediately to recover them. Sometimes it is preferable to encourage rather than intimidate: for example, you may be asked to “hurry up” and click a link right now to view “top secret” photos of a celebrity. If a social media message is asking you to do a certain thing instantly, whatever the issue, you should be suspicious. Such messages are used in a type of scam known as “clickbait”.
If an Offer Is Too Good to Be True…
Lottery scams are the best example of this: you may receive a message that says you have won hundreds of thousands of dollars as the “lucky” person. Likewise, the “secret” of making thousands of dollars working from home can be shared with you. These are commonly referred to as “sweepstakes scams” and when you contact the people who sent you this message, you will first be asked to pay the “charges”. For example, in order to receive the 10,000 USD you have earned, you will first be required to pay a tax of 750 USD. Likewise, for the job that will allow you to earn money from home, you must first purchase a “kit”. Do not believe any message that claims you have won something and asks you to pay first to receive the prize.
The Person Who Texted You May Not Be Your Friend
This technique is called the “impersonation scam”. For example, Jonathan, who is indeed your friend, sends you a message on Instagram and tells you to click a link to watch a video he “likes”. When you click on this link, malicious software will be installed on your computer. In the variants of this scam, people who are really your friends may ask you to send them small amounts of money. In any case, the people sending these messages are not your friends, they are people who have hacked their accounts. Be suspicious if your friend is asking you for money out of nowhere or sending a link without giving too much detail. Reach out to that friend using a device you control and make sure they actually sent that message.
Don’t Share Too Much About Yourself
Any information you share about yourself can be used to defraud you or a friend. We gave an example of the impersonation scam above: in this type of scam, the attacker can use the information you share to convince the target that they are indeed your friend. Your personal information may also be used to hijack your account or create a profile about you. For example, in romance scams, the attacker uses the information shared by the target to create a persona to fall in love with and demand money after texting for a while. This scam is quite common, especially on Tinder. Avoid oversharing on social media.
Avoid Shopping on Social Media
Do not use any social media store to buy anything unless it is owned by a brand that already has physical and online stores. Instagram is full of thousands of “shops” and at first glance, they all have a large number of followers. These followers also sent hundreds of messages about how satisfied they were with the purchase. Moreover, the prices of the products sold are much more affordable than the market “for some reason”. You may want to be fooled by all these and place an order, but that would be a big mistake. Because you send very important personal information about yourself (your name, address, even your credit card number) to an Instagram account that you do not know to whom it belongs. Buying Instagram followers is very easy and positive comments can also be purchased in bulk. Under no circumstances should you buy a product from social media, no matter how good it looks.
Use Security Software
You must have at least an antivirus program installed on your computer. Ideally, it would be best to use internet security software. Such programs not only protect your computer but also increase your online security. Almost all security programs have add-ons that monitor every link you click and make sure that it does not contain harmful content. This feature alone will keep you safe from most clickbait and phishing scams.