10 new tips for safe online shopping
As more and more Indians get internet savvy, online shopping is also on the rise, especially in festive seasons like this. However, while you may go for online shopping merrily, just follow some rules of thumb so that you don’t get fleeced by cyber sharks, phishing in troubled waters.At office or home, we may be spending more time with computers and internet, but that does not make us any less gullible. Sometimes, we trust technology more than individuals. This is just ripe breeding ground for cyber criminals.
Organized criminal gangs target online consumers with blended phishing attacks, some of which even find out details of their interests and use them to generate phishing emails tailored to tempt them into giving away their identities. As awareness has grown about Phishing within the Internet community, the tactics used by Phishers have evolved over time making it more difficult for the consumer to realize they are being duped:
Phishers are now increasingly using automated URL obfuscation tools to deceive would-be victims. The Phisher simply enters the URL of the legitimate website and then enters the address of the fake malicious website, with the tool automatically crafting a new “socially engineered” URL that includes the text from the legitimate URL as well as special characters that actually cause the URL to direct the browser to the fake website. To the untrained eye this specially-crafted URL looks like the real thing.
The use of Embedded Java script and Active X applets is becoming more common in Phishing emails. These scripts and applets can automatically place a graphic image of the expected legitimate URL on top of the address bar within the browser to hide the actual address that the browser.
Along with phishing, pharming is emerging as a bigger threat. Pharming is the technological evolution of Phishing, and while it requires a more sophisticated and technically savvy cyber criminal, it is growing rapidly.
A skillful Pharmer takes advantage of unpatched and vulnerable software using worms and viruses to compromise Internet DNS servers or host files on personal computers to transparently redirect consumers to illegitimate websites to harvest their personal financial information.
Here are some tips on how to combat phishers & pharmers:
1. Always be up-to-date with the latest security patches as well as your Anti Virus and Firewall software on your PC.
2. Never click on an embedded URL contained in any email. Rather, enter the URL manually in your browser address bar for banking and credit card websites.
3. Never fill in forms contained within email. Personal financial info should never be sent by email. Always use a secure website - verify that the URL contains https:// and that the closed lock appears on the lower right hand side of the browser for a secure website connection.
4. Do not click on an email attachment unless you know the sender and were expecting to receive the attachment.
5. Monitor your banking and credit card accounts on line and check for illegitimate transactions regularly.
6. Register with a credit card security system that requires a password to authorize transactions.
7. Use common sense. If any deal looks too good to be true then it probably is.
8. Beware of Bait-and-Switch ploys. A store advertises a great price for a product and then claims to have sold out of it when you want to buy it. Salesperson participating in bait and switch will try high-pressure sales techniques to get you to buy a similar but different product–at a higher price. Online, vendors sometimes advertise a low price for something like a digital camera and then will try to persuade you to buy accessories you probably don’t want or need as a way to jack up the price. Always refuse such a deal.
9. Pricing engines don’t always deliver the “best deals.” Pricing engines like Froogle and others are adept at directing you to the cheapest price of a given product. But often the best price isn’t the “best deal.” Low-priced merchandise might be a lure to a scam where a site takes your money and delivers you nothing. Items advertised for sale on eBay but never delivered included Xbox video game systems, designer handbags, laptop computers, and Rolex watches.
And ridiculously low prices should show that you may be buying counterfeit.
10. Read the Warranty before you buy that discounted flat panel TV, find out what the product warranty covers, how long the coverage lasts, and where you have to send the product to obtain repairs, a refund, or replacement
Organized criminal gangs target online consumers with blended phishing attacks, some of which even find out details of their interests and use them to generate phishing emails tailored to tempt them into giving away their identities. As awareness has grown about Phishing within the Internet community, the tactics used by Phishers have evolved over time making it more difficult for the consumer to realize they are being duped:
Phishers are now increasingly using automated URL obfuscation tools to deceive would-be victims. The Phisher simply enters the URL of the legitimate website and then enters the address of the fake malicious website, with the tool automatically crafting a new “socially engineered” URL that includes the text from the legitimate URL as well as special characters that actually cause the URL to direct the browser to the fake website. To the untrained eye this specially-crafted URL looks like the real thing.
The use of Embedded Java script and Active X applets is becoming more common in Phishing emails. These scripts and applets can automatically place a graphic image of the expected legitimate URL on top of the address bar within the browser to hide the actual address that the browser.
Along with phishing, pharming is emerging as a bigger threat. Pharming is the technological evolution of Phishing, and while it requires a more sophisticated and technically savvy cyber criminal, it is growing rapidly.
A skillful Pharmer takes advantage of unpatched and vulnerable software using worms and viruses to compromise Internet DNS servers or host files on personal computers to transparently redirect consumers to illegitimate websites to harvest their personal financial information.
Here are some tips on how to combat phishers & pharmers:
1. Always be up-to-date with the latest security patches as well as your Anti Virus and Firewall software on your PC.
2. Never click on an embedded URL contained in any email. Rather, enter the URL manually in your browser address bar for banking and credit card websites.
3. Never fill in forms contained within email. Personal financial info should never be sent by email. Always use a secure website - verify that the URL contains https:// and that the closed lock appears on the lower right hand side of the browser for a secure website connection.
4. Do not click on an email attachment unless you know the sender and were expecting to receive the attachment.
5. Monitor your banking and credit card accounts on line and check for illegitimate transactions regularly.
6. Register with a credit card security system that requires a password to authorize transactions.
7. Use common sense. If any deal looks too good to be true then it probably is.
8. Beware of Bait-and-Switch ploys. A store advertises a great price for a product and then claims to have sold out of it when you want to buy it. Salesperson participating in bait and switch will try high-pressure sales techniques to get you to buy a similar but different product–at a higher price. Online, vendors sometimes advertise a low price for something like a digital camera and then will try to persuade you to buy accessories you probably don’t want or need as a way to jack up the price. Always refuse such a deal.
9. Pricing engines don’t always deliver the “best deals.” Pricing engines like Froogle and others are adept at directing you to the cheapest price of a given product. But often the best price isn’t the “best deal.” Low-priced merchandise might be a lure to a scam where a site takes your money and delivers you nothing. Items advertised for sale on eBay but never delivered included Xbox video game systems, designer handbags, laptop computers, and Rolex watches.
And ridiculously low prices should show that you may be buying counterfeit.
10. Read the Warranty before you buy that discounted flat panel TV, find out what the product warranty covers, how long the coverage lasts, and where you have to send the product to obtain repairs, a refund, or replacement
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