This week we’ve seen suspicious YouTube program offers and phishing attempts in which scammers are impersonating Walmart, Apple, and more. Would you have been able to spot all of them?
If you’ve been on YouTube, you might have come across this ad that says you can join the new “YouTube Digital Residual Program” and earn millions. This is definitely too good to be true!
The creator claims in the ad that he’s made $150 a day via this program and is now inviting others to sign up for it.
If you proceed, the ad will take you to a page where you can fill in contact information and schedule a meeting for an online course, which may cost you an arm and a leg.
As per Scamadviser’s recent review, YouTube support replied that they are NOT aware of the “YouTube Digital Residual Program.”
The Final Word: The ad and the program are NOT legitimate. The creator’s goal is to sell you online courses that DON’T guarantee you any income. Think twice before you place any orders!
Besides selling online courses, scammers often impersonate trusted brands and prompt you to click on malicious links that lead to phishing pages. There they can record all your PII, such as your Social Security number, login credentials, and credit card details. With all this information, they can steal your money as well as your identity.
They make up various pretenses to trick you. For example, they say you’ve won an award:
“Congratulations. You’ve received a $100 Walmart new 2024 gift card!” Did you see this message recently? Many people shared online that they’ve seen such Walmart giveaway campaigns on Facebook and wondered if they’re real. The short answer is that it’s a SCAM!
If you take the bait and click on the link, you will be taken to a fake Walmart survey page:
And the “GET STARTED NOW” button will lead you to an online questionnaire.
After answering a series of questions, you will be led to one of several other random scam websites. What’s worse, you might end up exposing your PII and losing money. Be careful!
The truth is, there are lots of scams and scam sites on the internet and they’re getting even more difficult to detect with common sense alone. However, for an easy and reliable method of detecting and avoiding scam sites, check out Trend Micro ID Protection.
ID Protection can shield you from scams, fake and malware-infected websites, dangerous emails, phishing links, and lots more! If you come across something dangerous online, you’ll be alerted in real time so you’ll know to stay well clear.
Scammers also falsely claim that there are security issues with your phone and prompt you to click on the attached link:
Again, if you click on one of the links, you will be taken to a phishing page that collects all your PII. Don’t let that happen!
Did you place any orders on the App Store? If not, it’s normal that you would be shocked to receive an order renewal notification text. But hold on a second, is that text really from Apple?
Scammers instruct you to make a phone call if you don’t recognize the order. However, the number is NOT an official Apple number. If you call it, they may trick you into providing even more credentials such as financial details over the phone call. Don’t let them!
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