Online Scams
There is a broad range of online scams that fall under this category not all covered in this section as we have segmented them for your easy reference, they are “Work from Home” “Online Banking” and “ Online Dating” for further information.
Money transfers are a convenient way of sending money to someone electronically, they are however risky especially when you send money to someone you don’t know. This is because transferring or ‘wiring’ funds is the same as sending cash. The process is quick, but once the money is sent it is almost impossible to trace the money, which is why this method is so often exploited by scammers.
To make sure you never become a victim of this type of scam, we recommend that you do not wire money to strangers or at least verified via voice call or even a video call. Some examples are someone claiming to be a foreign government official, a seller insisting on a wire transfer for payment, a person offering an AirBnB or holiday rental, or anyone claiming to need help in transferring large sums of money. They will typically offer a big reward or what appears to be too good to be true. Alternatively, the scammers may take advantage of your kindness by pretending to be a legitimate charity in order to fraudulently collect money, or play on your sympathies and claim to be in hospital abroad requiring financial assistance.
Fraudulent “Pop-up Windows” are a type of online fraud often used to obtain personal information. They are the windows or ads that appear suddenly over or under the window you are currently viewing. Fraudulent websites or pop-up windows are used to collect your personal information.
Pop-up windows are often the result of programs installed on your computer called “adware” or “spyware.” These programs look in on your Web viewing activity and regularly come hidden inside many free downloads, such as music-sharing software or screen savers. Many of these programs enable harmless advertisements, but some contain “Trojan horse” programs that can record your keystrokes or relay other information to an unauthorized source.