The Top 5 Internet Scams You Ought to Know About

Most people have heard of the Nigerian prince that desperately needs money. As recently as 2019 though “Nigerian prince” email scams raked in over $700,000 per year. While you may be aware enough to spot a basic internet scam, many are not, and with criminals using artificial intelligence in financial scams, it’s important to know about internet scams now more than ever.

Read our list of online scams you ought to know about and learn how Quantum Fiber paired with WiFi 7 can help you stay safe online.

Online Scams to Know About

• Phishing Scams
• Relative Scams
• Disaster Scams
• Banking Scams
• Crypto Scams
• What to do if You’ve Been Scammed

Basic Phishing Scams

Most people are aware of phishing scams, but just like the Nigerian prince scam they still fall for them every day. In fact, over 300,000 people lost a collective $52 million to phishing scams in 2022 according to the FBI.

Phishing scams rely on quantity rather than quality. That’s why grammar and spelling mistakes paired with a message asking for personal information or money are easy ways to identify a phishing scam.

A.I. word generators have made it so much easier for scammers to widen their net by creating more phishing materials, faster, and with less errors. In fact, since the fourth quarter of 2022 (when ChatGPT was released) there’s been a 1,265% increase in phishing scams.

You have more tools than just your common sense to protect yourself against the wave of phishing scams. Quantum Fiber customers who download the 360 WiFi^TM app paired with WiFi 7 can see the number and type of threats detected and blocked by the app on their network. 360 WiFi even shows the details of each threat like the source, destination, time, and action taken by the app to protect you.

Relative Scams

Relative scams are the advanced siblings of phishing scams. In these cases, the scammer uses personal information to appear as if they’re a relative or friend of their target.

With advancing A.I. though, scammers can duplicate the voice of relatives with frightening accuracy.

The first line of defense is being aware of trends like A.I. fueled internet scams. Quantum Fiber®  360 WiFi is a strong second line thanks to its ability to monitor security threats and report threat details like website address and time. That ability is extremely important in case scammers send you links that take you to fraudulent websites.

Disaster Relief Scams

Scammers are not above using a natural disaster to profit.

There are two main ways scammers use disasters to steal:

• They pose as aid organizations like FEMA and ask for personal information or a fee to help natural disaster victims apply for aid.
• They pose as charities raising money for disaster victims.

Government aid agencies will never call you and ask for a fee or personal information to make you eligible for aid. If someone reaches out by phone, text, or email to do so then you should immediately block them and contact the agency they’re posing as.

Charity organizations may reach out to you after a natural disaster, but they can be easily authenticated using the following resources:

• Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance 
• Charity Navigator 
• Charity Watch
• GuideStar
• National Association of State Charity Officials

Of course, 360 WiFi is also set to help prevent scams like disaster relief cons from reaching you since the app’s intrusion prevention system allows users to enable detection and prevention of unauthorized or malicious attempts to access or compromise their network or devices!

Banking Scams

Next, there are banking scams to be aware of.

The most common type of banking scam involves reporting fraudulent charges. They typically go like this:

• The victim receives a phone call or text message from a scammer posing as their bank asking them to confirm a potentially fraudulent purchase.
• The victim confirms that they did not make the purchase.
• The scammer will then gather personal information that they use to access the victim’s bank account under the guise of cancelling the payment. They may also pose as if they’re crediting the victim’s account while really the victim is sending them a payment.

Again, being aware of financial scams is important so that you can recognize the signs above. If you have any doubts about the authenticity of a caller, end the conversation, find your bank’s website or customer service number on your own, and contact them to verify the claim.

Crypto Scams

Cryptocurrency is still an emerging field, and as a result there are plenty of scammers taking advantage of the lack of protocols and regulations.

Crypto Scams often have one of two goals:

• Trick people to share the cryptocurrency they currently own.
• Trick people to invest in fake cryptocurrency or crypto products.

There are many ways that scammers work to convince people to do one of the two things above. On top of that, there are fewer institutions to authenticate their claims due to crypto being a relatively new field.

So how do you authenticate information to see if you’re dealing with a crypto scam?

You must build a foundational knowledge of cryptocurrency before investing in it. Scammers and even some legitimate companies may push you to invest quickly. Always do your due diligence so you’re aware of what you’re investing in and comfortable with your decision.

What to do if you’ve fallen victim to an online scam

Each internet scam is unique and will have its own best response. We’ve listed a few best practices for what to do if you’re the victim of an internet scam here, but the best response for your specific situation will come from your financial institution or law enforcement.

Best practices after falling for an internet scam:

• Cut off contact with the scammer. They may continue to send you threats but do not respond unless instructed by law enforcement or another authority.
• Change compromised passwords and usernames.
• If you made a payment then work with the institution you made it through to recover it. That could be your bank, a wire transfer company, or if you sent cash through the mail then the carrier you sent it through.
• If your identity has been compromised then secure your finances by contacting the three major credit bureaus and notify them of the breach.
• Report the scam to the Federal Trade Commission, Better Business Bureau, and local law enforcement.

Help Protect your home network with WiFi 7 and 360 WiFi

Scammers are always refining their tactics, but WiFi 7 and 360 WiFi help spot fraudulent links, software, and actors before they ever infiltrate your network.

Quantum Fiber offers all 360 WiFi customers the following security features:

• Users can monitor the security threats on their network to see the number and type of threats detected and blocked by the 360 WiFi app.
• Anti-virus settings that can scan file attachments for and protect devices from viruses, trojans, and other malicious software.
• Manage website filter settings to block websites that are known to host or distribute malware, phishing, and other harmful content.
• Intrusion prevention system that detects and prevents unauthorized or malicious attempts to access or compromise their network or devices.

Ready to add Quantum Fiber speed and 360 WiFi security to your network? Check for Quantum Fiber availability in your area!