Bitcoin ATMs are a hotbed for scams, FTC says | TechCrunch

September 4, 2024September 3, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) published a report about increasing fraud at Bitcoin ATMs. These ATMs allow people to turn their cash into crypto, but they’ve become a tool for scammers to perpetrate fraud. Since 2020, the FTC says, fraud at Bitcoin ATMs has ballooned nearly tenfold, and just in the first half of 2024, consumers have lost over $66 million to these scams.

Scammers use tactics like fake phone calls, messages, and security alerts to convince people that they’re in danger, and that they should deposit cash into a Bitcoin ATM to protect it. Then, the scammer may share a QR code to scan at the Bitcoin ATM, which deposits the cash into the scammer’s wallet.

Scammers Are Now Impersonating Small Businesses Online | Small Biz Trends

June 21, 2024June 20, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

A new type of scam is targeting small businesses and their customers. Copycats are using small business websites, videos, and social media posts to impersonate them, running online ads to attract customers and make their offerings seem legitimate. Then, they redirect users to a replicated version of the small business website where they can complete their “purchase.” Some might receive cheap knock-off versions of the products they thought they were getting, while others don’t receive anything. And all their ire is then directed to the actual small business who was impersonated.

The Wall Street Journal recently spoke to several small business owners who had been targeted by this type of attack.

For example, Ryan Dahlstrom, global director of digital commerce for Merino sock company Darn Tough Vermont, told the WSJ, “They’d find an old ad we had run, flip a 75% or 80% badge over that image, and throw it up as a sponsored ad or a sponsored post.”

NY AG sues Citibank for failing to protect customers from fraud | CNN Business

January 31, 2024January 30, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against Citibank on Tuesday, alleging the big bank failed to do enough to protect and reimburse victims of fraud.

The lawsuit argues that New York customers lost millions of dollars — in some cases their entire life savings — to scammers and hackers because of Citi’s weak security and anti-fraud measures.

According to the NY AG, Citi does not do enough to prevent unauthorized account takeovers, illegally refuses to reimburse fraud victims, and “misleads” customers about their rights after their accounts are hacked.

Common Business Scams and How to Avoid Them | business.com

September 21, 2022September 20, 2022 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Scammers want to steal from your company. Here’s what they do, and how you can shut them down.

You’ve undoubtedly heard about consumer scams in some shape or fashion. Perhaps you’ve read a story about an elderly relative whose retirement funds were drained by a pretend tech support agent or saw something on the local news about people writing bad checks. These types of scams are certainly a threat to individuals and families. What you may not realize is that many companies also find themselves in the sights of scammers. In too many cases, they don’t see the signs of fraud, and don’t know what’s happening until it’s too late.

Below, you’ll find a guide for avoiding scams in business, especially the kind that take the form of business-to-business (B2B) interactions. Whether you own a business or are employed by one, this is information you’ll want to review very carefully. You’ll find a list of the scams most often employed by those hoping to swindle companies out of their cash. You’ll also learn about the steps you can take to ensure your business doesn’t become a statistic.

Beware: Fake IRS Letters Are Making The Rounds This Summer | Forbes

August 7, 2019August 6, 2019 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Correspondence season is in full swing. That means that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is sending out bills and notices to taxpayers – including correspondence focused on cryptocurrency and healthcare reporting. It may be hard for taxpayers to tell the real thing from the fakes – and scammers are taking advantage of the confusion. Here’s what you need to know.

Many taxpayers are aware that the IRS will never call to demand immediate payment over the phone, or call about taxes owed without first having mailed you a bill. To try and trick taxpayers, some scammers are sending letters, hoping that folks will take the bait.

A New Breed of ATM Hackers Gets in Through a Bank’s Network | WIRED

April 11, 2019April 10, 2019 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

OVER THE PAST few years, scammers have increasingly siphoned cash off of digital payment networks, stealing hundreds of millions of dollars so far. Not only is the problem hard to contain; new findings show that it’s evolving and maturing, with new types of ATM malware on the rise.

Researchers at the Kaspersky Security Analyst Summit in Singapore are presenting findings on Wednesday about a new wave of payment system scams. Beyond so-called jackpotting attacks, which cause individual ATMs to spit out money, hackers are manipulating ATM networks and the digital authentication checks in the machines to cash out fraudulent transfers they initiate around the globe.