Counterfeit items scam

This scam is occuring mainly on internet shopping websites such as eBay or Amazon as people begin to look for used products in order to save some money.  Items such as sunglasses, headphones and clothing can be easily faked and passed off as genuine items and so people purchase these items without knowing that it is real or fake. The problem lies in time as people do not suspect the item is fake, but it starts to show when the item is used more frequently and by the time that they figure out that the item is fake the refund period will have expired and they will be left with a fake product.

The best way to avoid these scams is by purchasing at the retailer's specific store, for example if you are purchasing Ray-Ban sunglasses, then you should purchase them at the retailer's website or stores.

Paypal Scams

This type of scam occurs when you are selling an item on an online website, for example eBay or Amazon and a person responds to your advertisement on the item that you are selling that he/she would like to purchase the item. These people usually respond to expensive items that are hard to sell, for example used computer hardware and prey on the seller's anxiousness to get the item sold quickly. After the item is shipped to the scammer's address the address will usually be a fake address and that paypal (the online transaction system) will have deducted the costs out of your own account and both your money and the item will be gone.

You can prevent these scams by just doing a simple background check on the buyer, for example phoning the seller directly about his purchase or checking if the address is real.

Facebook virus

Lately people have been encountering a new virus on facebook that is infecting computers all over the world, that virus is called the Koobface worm. This virus is spread via facebook and usually uses a unique title to masquerade as "breaking news" and when the post is clicked you will be directed to what looks to be a  youtube video and then you will be prompted to update your flash player to watch the youtube video which is in fact the Koobface worm. Once the worm is installed your facebook account will be taken over and you will post the worm to your facebook friends. The danger of this virus is that your personal information on facebook will be compromised and your computer can used to spread the virus which will put other personal information on the computer at risk.

The best way to avoid this virus is to think before you click on a link that redirects you even if it is from a friend on facebook and avoid installing any software that you are unsure of.

"Investment" scams

This type of scam tries to get the victim to purchase "penny" stocks as it usually advertises that it is a good investment choice and that you will be able to make huge profit on this investment. The trick of this scam is that it is built like a pyramid and that the people will continue to purchase the stock as they see the increase in the share value, but once the person at the top sees that the price has reached it's peak then it will finally sell off all its share at the current share value and all the people that had invested in the stock will suffer massive losses. The easiest way to avoid these scams is to check with professionals if the stock is from a reputable source.

"Penny Auction" scams

Recently there have been websites that have been advertising that you can win various different prizes for usually just a fraction of the cost. Of course there is a catch to these "auctions", you need to purchase "bids" to which allow you to bid on an auction and when the auction ends the last bidder recieves the prize, for example an xbox 360. The trick is that these sites use computer automated "clickers" that bid on the auctions at a instant and so the chance of winning an auction is very low and these "bids"cost real money every time so in the end you will have won nothing and your money will have been spend on these useless "bids". 

The best way to avoid these scams is to refer back to the quote "If it looks to good to be true then it probably is".

"Employment" Scams

In the current state of the economy, more and more people are turning to the internet for employment and so many of these "employment" scams showed up with the intent of scamming these type of people. This type of scam is spread from e-mail and usually promises the victim a large salary for doing something very simple such as recieving cheques. The trick of this scam is that they will try to get the victim to use their own money to send back to the scammers while they can keep the cheque that they sent to the victim. The cheque is usually fake and the victim will have sent his own money to the scammers in return for a fake cheque. The easiest method to prevent these scams is just to ignore the e-mails.

4 Different ways to protect yourself from internet scams

1) If it looks too good to be true, it probably is. Most scams prey on people that look to make a quick and easy buck and in the real world there are no free handouts and so this rule should apply to the internet as well.

2) Don't open suspicious e-mail attachments from people that you don't know. The attachment could contain spyware and other malicious programs that can steal your personal information.

3) Before signing up to a website, check to see if the website is reputable and check what other people are saying about it. If this information cannot be found, take caution.

4) Keep your computer protected with anti-virus software at all times. Most anti-virus software have a list of malicious websites and will block connections when you encounter these websites.

Watch out for fake websites

This type of scam is occuring more frequently as people are signing up to various different websites with the intent of shopping online. This scam revolves around a fake email that claims that your account has been "hacked" and your information is at risk and tells you visit the link below to "confirm" your data with the website. The threat of this situation is that you are not giving your information to a "trusted" source, for example eBay, but rather another person who will then use your information for malicious intent.

If you see such an email pop up in your inbox immediately delete it or check with the official website if such a email has been sent before clicking on it.

Threats
-Credit card information, personal information will be leaked
- Malicious software can be downloaded without your consent

Best Anti-virus software to protect your computer from scams/viruses

One of the best ways to prevent yourself from encountering internet viruses, scams and all the other nasty stuff is by installing anti-virus software. Avast anti-virus 2012 software includes various different features that allow you to guard not only against computer viruses from email, websites or any other location, but also it has a database of known internet scam websites to which notifies you immediately when you visit a malicious website. This will allow you to guard against most of the main stream scams that are taking place all over the internet as Avast already has a database full of these websites. Finally the best part about this is that this anti-virus software is free.

Download link: http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download#FDI

"Antivirus" hoaxes

Another common thing to watch out for is anti virus advertisments some will try to persuade you to purchase anti-virus software by claiming that your computer is infected with some sort of virus and that it will clean and disinfect your computer completely of all viruses for a fee to purchase their software.

Concerns
- Your computer may not be infected with viruses as stated by the advertisement and the software may not clean the computer completely, it is best to read trusted anti-software reviews to find out if it is a good choice.

"Congratulations You've won" Scams

Another common scam that usually appears on the side of a webpage as an advertisement, It usually advertises that you've won a prize of significant value such as an Ipad, playstation, xbox360, iphone etc. After you click the advertisment you usually have to enter your mobile phone number in order to claim the prize. What they don't tell you is that you will be charged a fee once you give them your mobile phone number and the prize may not be given to you even after all this.

Lottery Scams

I'm sure everyone has seen this in their email somewhere claiming that you have won a large sum of money to which all you have to do is to click a link to claim the money. The link will usually take you to a site where you will be asked to disclose personal information such as your name or address in which can be used to steal your identity or bank account information.

Threats
- Sensitive information (name, address, phone number,) can be used for malicious intent once it is disclosed
- Link may contain viruses to "phish" your personal information such as passwords to bank accounts

"Make Money Fast" scams

You see this all the time while browsing the internet, all of a sudden you are browsing and you see an advertisment to the side that advertises that you can make fast money by doing some trivial task such as browsing the internet or downloading a certain type of software.

This type of scam is designed to lure its users to the incentive of making money fast and usually requires the user to purchase a product or download a certain software.

Threats
- Downloading unknown software can result in computer viruses
- The advertisement might require you to sign up to which your personal information could be sold to other people

Internet Lookout Introduction

This blog was created to help people to navigate the vast and interesting world of the internet safely. This blog will include information of the different type of internet scams that are being created each and every day by internet users all of the world and also different situations that you must take caution to at all times. Hope you enjoy reading this blog.