(ARA) – Scam artists are always changing their schemes in an effort to trick consumers into handing over money or personal information. One of the latest scams involves hacking into social networking sites and then targeting specific friends in the victim’s account.

For example, a scam artist will gain access to “Susan’s” Facebook account. The scammer will send an e-mail message to all of her friends pretending to be Susan and claiming to have been mugged, injured or arrested in a foreign country, and in need of some cash immediately. But in reality, Susan is completely unaware that this message was sent out because she did not send it.

Believing that this message is from Susan, her friends want to help and immediately follow her instructions to wire money through a money transfer service like Western Union. Later they discover that they sent money to a scam artist.

The following are some tips from Western Union to help you avoid becoming a victim of these “emergency” scams through which fraudsters prey on people’s emotions:

* If you receive an e-mail or phone call claiming a friend or family member needs cash, take a step back and attempt to independently verify the need. Call the person on their phone, or call a mutual friend and find out if they are aware of the situation.

* Let your friend or family member know that you have received a call or e-mail from them claiming they need help. If it turns out there isn’t an emergency situation happening, they will need to report the case to local police and the administrators of their social networking site. Also advise them to change their passwords and install or update an anti-virus and anti-spyware program to help protect their computer from hackers.

* If you did send a money transfer through Western Union, and realize that it was a scam, immediately contact the company at (800) 448-1492. If the transaction has not been picked up, it will be refunded to you. Contact the police if the money has been picked up and file a report about the scam.

* Be aware of questionable situations. Scam scenarios can evolve quickly and the way scammers contact victims changes daily. Another scam similar to the social networking scheme that targets victims’ emotional reactions involves phone calls from people pretending to be family members or authority figures who claim to be in need of money for medical assistance or even bail.

Regardless of whether you are contacted online or through some other means, be suspicious of requests to send money to “help a friend or family member out” unless you can absolutely verify the information you’ve been given.

For more information on other scams or for more tips on how to protect yourself from scams, visit www.WesternUnion.com/fraud.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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This doesn’t mean that you can’t surf safely online. Quite the contrary, you just need to follow a few simple guidelines to protect yourself and your family and create a safe and enjoyable experience. And given that June marks Internet Safety Month, it’s a good time to think about how best to educate yourself and your loved ones on both the risks out there, and the simple ways to prevent them.

“Consumers really need to be proactive in the fight against cyber crime. Staying safe online is a combination of using the latest and greatest security software tools and exercising good judgment and common sense,” says Michael Kaiser, executive director of the National Cyber Security Alliance.

In honor of Internet Safety Month, here are eight tips to help keep you, your family and your personal information safe online:

1. Manage your e-mail inbox. Delete unwanted and unsolicited email and don’t open e-mails from people you don’t know. Be cautious about unusual e-mail from people you do know. Some cyber criminals use software to make an e-mail look like it comes from an official organization (like your bank) or someone you know.

2. Always think before you click and treat links and attachments in e-mail and instant messaging with caution. Download files only from sites you know and trust and never open an attachment from someone you don’t know. These can contain viruses and malware that can cause your computer to break down or is an attempt to steal personal information. If in doubt, delete it.

3. Use extreme caution when working on a public computer; Do not save your log in information, always log out of Web sites by clicking “log out” on the site (even if you are just stepping away for a few minutes), and never enter sensitive or personal information on a public computer.

4. Be sure your firewall is turned on. A firewall is an electronic fence that helps protect your PC from hackers that may try to steal sensitive information. To turn on your firewall, simply click the start button and open the control panel. Follow the security link and then click ‘Turn Windows Firewall on or off.’

5. Protect personal information by using strong passwords. Make sure they are lengthy and incorporate letters, numbers and symbols.

6. When shopping online, be a savvy consumer. Conduct online research to find out what others have to say about their customer satisfaction. Be wary of companies that don’t provide any contact information, including a physical mailing address and telephone number.

7. The best way to protect yourself is to keep your security software, operating system and browser up-to-date with automatic updates and practice safe online behavior.

8. New security, privacy and reliability features tools in Internet Explorer 8 can provide you with a more secure Internet experience. It’s worth considering downloading it for free. Internet Explorer 8 puts you in control of your safety and privacy online and helps protect you from new threats online.

For more information, please visit www.microsoft.com/ie8 or the National Cyber Security Alliance at www.StaySafeOnline.org.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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There are too many ways for passwords to be compromised for people to trust this thin layer of protection. The Internet is now filled with technologies specifically designed to capture your password. “Phishing” sites that mimic familiar sites and keystroke loggers that track the information you type are now part of the landscape of the Internet.

People are becoming more aware that it’s not good enough to simply be very careful with the passwords that are used for important accounts or Web sites. Most people use the same or very similar passwords across many Web sites and therefore, when a password is captured, it can be used to access many things.

A recent survey found that 70 percent of IT professionals thought passwords were not secure. These same people admitted that one in five companies had already had a security breach that allowed private information to get into the wrong hands. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission claims that consumers lost more than $5 billion to identity theft in 2007 and businesses lost far more.

“Consumers need to become more aware of the danger of relying exclusively on passwords to protect their personal information; and Web sites need to provide simple and inexpensive ways for consumers to protect themselves,” says Evan Conway, chief identity officer of Positive Networks, a company that specializes in working with companies and Web sites to ensure that privacy and information is protected.

One approach, he explains, to having a more secure site is a concept called two-factor authentication. The idea is that prior to allowing someone access to an account, a Web site or application checks two separate things for identity verification.

“Not only does the consumer need to have the password, but must also have an additional method to prove their identity,” says Conway. Sites that use Positive Networks’ PhoneFactor (www.phonefactor.com) technology, will instantly ring either the customer’s mobile or landline phone when someone signs onto an application or Web site. The password is verified just like normal and then the user must answer an instant automatic phone call to gain access. It only takes seconds and generally comes at no cost to the consumer. In additional to preventing unauthorized access, it proactively notifies a consumer if there is a fraudulent attempt to gain access being made.

Other approaches require consumers to carry a special physical “token” with them that provides a constantly changing additional password to verify. While generally quite secure, this approach can be expensive and requires consumers to carry an extra device. Biometric technologies such as fingerprint readers and retinal scans are no longer science fiction and have been implemented in some cases. While adding appropriate security, they also bring a high cost and require additional devices to be available to make the verification.

While the risk of a breach is expensive for consumers and companies, bad publicity is also driving companies to make these improvements. Stories develop almost daily regarding issues of identity theft and privacy loss caused by failures of businesses to protect their customers. The Wall Street Journal reported on April 29, 2008, that a series of national medical organizations, including health plans and medical facilities, had privacy breaches. Beyond the cost issues associated with these breaches, the loss of trust can provide additional challenges and legal issues for these types of organizations.

What is clear is that it will take a combined effort to protect your identity and privacy. Technology providers continue to offer solutions that are much easier for consumers and businesses. Businesses and Web sites must implement solutions and actively promote them to their users.

In the end, consumers must protect themselves by choosing to do business with organizations that offer solutions that adequately protect their privacy. It is becoming increasingly clear that passwords no longer offer a protection that can be trusted by consumers.

To learn more about the PhoneFactor service offered by Positive Networks, visit www.phonefactor.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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