Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving is followed by Cyber Monday. Both are big days for online retailers and for online fraudsters. You, the IT pro, know that you should not fall for e-mail scams advertising incredible deals that seem too good to be true. But, in the spirit of the season, IT pros may want to be generous with their insight and advice to help protect their friends, family and co-workers. Warn people that a hacker’s favorite exploit during this time of year is a scam where the hottest toys of the season are offered at hard-to-believe low prices via e-mail. The issue isn’t simply that victims can end up entering their credit card information on malicious sites designed to look like well-known, trusted ones (though that is one possible outcome). Simply clicking on that e-mail and taking a look at the offer is risky. People might unknowingly download a keylogger that can steal personal information typed in when making any kind of Internet transaction. Let people know, too, that even going to an online retailer via a search on Google can be dangerous. Malicious Web site operators have learned how to rise in the rankings of Google searches. Tell people it is safer to type a known URL into the browser rather than clicking on search results. (Beware of typing mistakes, too, that can send users to malicious Web sites.) Also tell your friends to remember to patch their operating systems and browsers before doing their online shopping. It is possible to pick up a virus while visiting a bona fide Web site, too, if that site has been compromised, but less likely if the latest patches are in place. Carefully watching credit card statements is also important. Should fraudulent charges appear, the sooner consumers contact their credit card company, the better.
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