#Middlebury
By JUSTIN GOLDEN
Apologies for my creative use of the title of the 1971 James Bond movie “Diamonds Are Forever” in my column. It appears we will continue to be plagued with continuous attempts at gaining information about us, information that then will be used against us to monetize that data. One of the newest angles is for someone to pose as a representative of a government agency (federal, state or local), charity, or financial, health or educational institution reaching out to you due to an issue, problem or solicitation appealing to your nobler sensitivities.
A friend received a voice mail message on their cell phone saying the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) was notifying him of a difference between what he paid in income tax and what was really owed for last year. It said a mathematical error was made.
When he called the “agency” telephone number and spoke to the “agent” assigned to his case, he was told a warrant would be issued for his arrest immediately if he didn’t make a payment of overdue taxes, fees and interest. He merely had to go and purchase an iTunes gift certificate(s) totaling the amount due and then pass that information along with the PIN code to the “IRS agent.”
The “agent” helpfully gave my friend his badge number to assure him that this was a legitimate collection and payment process. If you want to see examples of these scenarios, log into You Tube and search under IRS scam calls.
A colleague received a text message purportedly from an associate who asked for her assistance. She needed to get an iTunes gift certificate for her niece. It was her birthday but she couldn’t do this as she was traveling.
Could my colleague get it from a store near her? The “associate” promised to pay her back as soon as she returned.
The message went on, “Kindly, let me know if you can handle this. Total amount needed is $300 or whatever amount you can afford presently in ($100 denomination). Please I will need you to scratch the back of the card to reveal the PIN, then take a snap shot of the back showing the PIN and have them email to me I can forward to her and please remember to keep this private. Please keep me posted!”
It turns out her email address book was hacked. Several of her friends, family and colleagues received the same request. One actually purchased a gift certificate but hadn’t confirmed the PIN to “her” yet. Her friend called her cell phone, which alerted her that she had been hacked. Someone who was spoofing her almost received an illegal payment.
Before, you discount both instances I’ve shared with you in terms of how would someone not know this was illegitimate, it is happening regularly. The outcomes have become an all too common occurrence. Be alert and question validity before responding to an email, text or voice mail.
Don’t become the next cybersecurity hacking statistic. Contact Golden Technology Services Inc, at 972-679-9738 or info@gtscloud.com to reduce your online risks.
