How to Avoid Online Scams
Look at the domain., Look for any red flags., Consider the website source., Beware of surveys., Knockoffs., Search about offer., Look for the email source to help judge whether it's legitimate., Temporary disposable email., Consider where a given...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Look at the domain.
Most scam offers try to use a URL that looks like the domain of the legitimate website.
Many domains start with "com-" in an attempt to try to look real; however, web addresses usually don't work that way if they're legitimate.
Here are examples of fake websites:
LifeGuide Hub.com-in.site/reward.html youtube.com-red.com -
Step 2: Look for any red flags.
Is it trying to fool you by being close to a well-known name? If it feels fishy, don't click on it.
Search for it online and see if there are any other reports of people being misled by it.
If you did click on it, where did the link lead? Was the website trying to take you to a scam? , Unless the offer was from a trusted website or trusted company, do not trust the offer.
Check back on the URL, most scams use scam URLs.
Be aware that some trusted websites may have untrustworthy advertisements.
Going back to domain names, check the URL of the offer and see if it matches the URL of the trusted site.
If it's a pop-up that doesn't have a URL, err on the side of caution and don't touch it.
You may want to ask the website owner if the advertisement is legitimate. , Many fake offers have surveys.
They say the requirement for the product is completing the survey and giving your personal information.
However, never give your personal info to an untrusted source.
Most surveys have an eligibility test (Usually whatever you enter, it says you are eligible):
Do you want blah blah blah Your age range How often do you shop Do you like that company , Look for misspellings of brands and company names.
These are usually called knockoffs.
If you find any knockoff names, it is obvious scam., Search to see comments about the offer to see what people said.
Be careful not to trust comments from the page the offer was on.
They may be using fake comments.
But search online to see what other people said about that offer., If you're unsure of whether an email is legitimate, check to see if it has a "tail".
An email with a sender of support@LifeGuide Hub.com would be legitimate, but if the email address was "support.LifeGuide [email protected]" or anything that isn't known to be from the site, it's a scam.
If it's in your spam folder, it's most likely a scam, too., Use a temporary email address for sites that might be spammy.
Some email scams spam your junk inbox.
To fight spam, use a free temporary email such as: guerrillamail.com fakemailgenerator.com throwawaymail.com , Your web browser cannot determine anything about your computer files., Some browsers and ISPs send unsafe website warnings, such as malware site, Deceptive site, broken not private connection, fraudulent site, etc.
Those are meaning the site can be risky.
They will have a button to go back, and another button to accept the safety risks and enter the site., Most fake computer errors try to say your computer contains errors such as out-of-date drivers or viruses and malware.
This is a tactic employed by a few "rogue security" malware programs, such as SpySheriff.
Creating additional dialogs, and recreating them after you close the dialog.
You may not be able to disable the computer from recreating the dialogs.
A button or hyperlink to install something, often claims to be an antivirus program or a computer cleaner, but is very often malware or a virus.
Error messages from your web browser that you have malware on your computer.
As mentioned before, websites can't determine things about your computer files, so your web browser shouldn't be giving you notifications that you have a virus. , What is the computer error? If the error said anything regarding on computer virus, outdated drivers, etc. those are scams.
Most as well have a phone number, telling you to call that phone number for immediate tech help.
Some calls may ask for credit card number for purchase of "PC Protection"
which usually is a rip-off, or sells your personal information filling up your voicemail, email, and phone calls with spam., Some websites may have some sketchy advertisements, and a common one is a JavaScript ransomware.
The most common scam claims to be from the FBI, claiming that your browser has been "locked" for supposed illegal activity, and demands that you pay a large amount of money through a MoneyPak to "enable" your browser again.
This is a fraudulent claim; however, trying to close out the window will result in a pop-up window claiming that not paying will result in your information being detained, and won't let you leave the page.
To disable this scam, you can try disabling JavaScript temporarily or force-quitting your internet browser.
Under no circumstances should you pay the fee
- you won't get the money back.
While this scam has not been known to install malware, you may want to run a virus scan afterwards, just to ensure that your computer hasn't been infected by the problematic website.
Some ransomware, such as the infamous CryptoLocker, has been distributed through trojans, with the malware file being disguised as a seemingly innocuous PDF or document file.
If you don't remember downloading the file, the best choice is to remove it from your computer without opening it. , If you are on a website to download a program, make sure it is the official program website and not a tech support site that has a lot of downloads available.
Also, you may find ads disguised as the download button.
Make sure you are not clicking on an ad before clicking "Download"., If you see a seal about safe to install, click on the seal to see where it goes.
If it goes to a computer safety program website, it usually means the download is safe.
If you do not see a seal, search online to see if it is safe.
Look for comments.
Only trust social media based comments.
Like if you see Facebook comments, or anything in this relevance, the comments usually can be trusted. , Some problems with your browser or browsing can likely be malware.
If you are currently not using any anti-malware programs, be sure to install a trusted one.
They will scan your PC for any malware and remove them.
The most popular ones are:
Malwarebytes McAfee Norton , Some like this image seem too good to be true.
And most even though it sounds true may also be a scam.
Some scams are hard to determine either legitimate or scam., There are some free online services to do a whois on a website to determine either scam or legitimate.
This can tell how popular a website is, it's domain registration company, IP, and some server info. -
Step 3: Consider the website source.
-
Step 4: Beware of surveys.
-
Step 5: Knockoffs.
-
Step 6: Search about offer.
-
Step 7: Look for the email source to help judge whether it's legitimate.
-
Step 8: Temporary disposable email.
-
Step 9: Consider where a given error has popped up.
-
Step 10: Unsafe website warning.
-
Step 11: Prevent fake computer errors from luring you in.
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Step 12: Error.
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Step 13: Be on the lookout for online ransomware scams.
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Step 14: Be careful installing any programs.
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Step 15: Look for safety certificates before downloading.
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Step 16: Use an anti-malware program.
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Step 17: Too good to be true.
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Step 18: whois.
Detailed Guide
Most scam offers try to use a URL that looks like the domain of the legitimate website.
Many domains start with "com-" in an attempt to try to look real; however, web addresses usually don't work that way if they're legitimate.
Here are examples of fake websites:
LifeGuide Hub.com-in.site/reward.html youtube.com-red.com
Is it trying to fool you by being close to a well-known name? If it feels fishy, don't click on it.
Search for it online and see if there are any other reports of people being misled by it.
If you did click on it, where did the link lead? Was the website trying to take you to a scam? , Unless the offer was from a trusted website or trusted company, do not trust the offer.
Check back on the URL, most scams use scam URLs.
Be aware that some trusted websites may have untrustworthy advertisements.
Going back to domain names, check the URL of the offer and see if it matches the URL of the trusted site.
If it's a pop-up that doesn't have a URL, err on the side of caution and don't touch it.
You may want to ask the website owner if the advertisement is legitimate. , Many fake offers have surveys.
They say the requirement for the product is completing the survey and giving your personal information.
However, never give your personal info to an untrusted source.
Most surveys have an eligibility test (Usually whatever you enter, it says you are eligible):
Do you want blah blah blah Your age range How often do you shop Do you like that company , Look for misspellings of brands and company names.
These are usually called knockoffs.
If you find any knockoff names, it is obvious scam., Search to see comments about the offer to see what people said.
Be careful not to trust comments from the page the offer was on.
They may be using fake comments.
But search online to see what other people said about that offer., If you're unsure of whether an email is legitimate, check to see if it has a "tail".
An email with a sender of support@LifeGuide Hub.com would be legitimate, but if the email address was "support.LifeGuide [email protected]" or anything that isn't known to be from the site, it's a scam.
If it's in your spam folder, it's most likely a scam, too., Use a temporary email address for sites that might be spammy.
Some email scams spam your junk inbox.
To fight spam, use a free temporary email such as: guerrillamail.com fakemailgenerator.com throwawaymail.com , Your web browser cannot determine anything about your computer files., Some browsers and ISPs send unsafe website warnings, such as malware site, Deceptive site, broken not private connection, fraudulent site, etc.
Those are meaning the site can be risky.
They will have a button to go back, and another button to accept the safety risks and enter the site., Most fake computer errors try to say your computer contains errors such as out-of-date drivers or viruses and malware.
This is a tactic employed by a few "rogue security" malware programs, such as SpySheriff.
Creating additional dialogs, and recreating them after you close the dialog.
You may not be able to disable the computer from recreating the dialogs.
A button or hyperlink to install something, often claims to be an antivirus program or a computer cleaner, but is very often malware or a virus.
Error messages from your web browser that you have malware on your computer.
As mentioned before, websites can't determine things about your computer files, so your web browser shouldn't be giving you notifications that you have a virus. , What is the computer error? If the error said anything regarding on computer virus, outdated drivers, etc. those are scams.
Most as well have a phone number, telling you to call that phone number for immediate tech help.
Some calls may ask for credit card number for purchase of "PC Protection"
which usually is a rip-off, or sells your personal information filling up your voicemail, email, and phone calls with spam., Some websites may have some sketchy advertisements, and a common one is a JavaScript ransomware.
The most common scam claims to be from the FBI, claiming that your browser has been "locked" for supposed illegal activity, and demands that you pay a large amount of money through a MoneyPak to "enable" your browser again.
This is a fraudulent claim; however, trying to close out the window will result in a pop-up window claiming that not paying will result in your information being detained, and won't let you leave the page.
To disable this scam, you can try disabling JavaScript temporarily or force-quitting your internet browser.
Under no circumstances should you pay the fee
- you won't get the money back.
While this scam has not been known to install malware, you may want to run a virus scan afterwards, just to ensure that your computer hasn't been infected by the problematic website.
Some ransomware, such as the infamous CryptoLocker, has been distributed through trojans, with the malware file being disguised as a seemingly innocuous PDF or document file.
If you don't remember downloading the file, the best choice is to remove it from your computer without opening it. , If you are on a website to download a program, make sure it is the official program website and not a tech support site that has a lot of downloads available.
Also, you may find ads disguised as the download button.
Make sure you are not clicking on an ad before clicking "Download"., If you see a seal about safe to install, click on the seal to see where it goes.
If it goes to a computer safety program website, it usually means the download is safe.
If you do not see a seal, search online to see if it is safe.
Look for comments.
Only trust social media based comments.
Like if you see Facebook comments, or anything in this relevance, the comments usually can be trusted. , Some problems with your browser or browsing can likely be malware.
If you are currently not using any anti-malware programs, be sure to install a trusted one.
They will scan your PC for any malware and remove them.
The most popular ones are:
Malwarebytes McAfee Norton , Some like this image seem too good to be true.
And most even though it sounds true may also be a scam.
Some scams are hard to determine either legitimate or scam., There are some free online services to do a whois on a website to determine either scam or legitimate.
This can tell how popular a website is, it's domain registration company, IP, and some server info.
About the Author
Helen Freeman
A passionate writer with expertise in cooking topics. Loves sharing practical knowledge.
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