The Internet is an essential business tool, both personally and professionally. Unfortunately, there are many criminals who use it to take advantage of the unsuspecting. Recognizing suspicious emails can protect your business from criminals looking for money, or personal and confidential information.

Tech scams have been around for a while now, but they continue to grow in scope and sophistication and are increasingly successful. Here’s how to identify a tech scam and keep your data protected:

Pop-Up Warnings

Have you ever clicked a link and gotten a pop-up saying “threat detected,” or “virus detected?” These are most common on Windows OS, and sometimes on Android or iOS systems. Their sole purpose is to scare you into thinking you've got a problem when in reality you don't.

So, what do these criminals want?

Typically, they're looking for money or personal information. With these types of scams, there is often a number to call which will then take you through the process of trying to fix a problem that doesn't exist. They will ask you to pay for help, selling you malicious software, or they will take over your computer remotely. 

Today, most programs like Google Chrome or Windows have built-in anti-virus protection to prevents these types of threats.

Unsolicited Calls or Emails

A legitimate organization will never contact you directly about a problem with your computer. The built-in protection is often enough to detect most threats. If you want to confirm a problem and remove it, run the built-in virus protection on your system.

Requests for Remote Access

This is another dangerous scam. A caller will pretend to be someone from a major company like Apple or Microsoft. They will contact you and tell you that your computer has been sending error messages about a virus, then request remote access to remove the threat.

They might also try to convince you to pay for a service and ask for  credit card, or personal information. If they continue to persist and you refuse, they may become frustrated or abusive. This is a big red flag that you are being scammed.

Tech scams are a growing threat and scammers are getting bolder and smarter at deceiving people into purchasing bogus “repairs.” Safe practices are critical to avoid online scams. Never give out personal information unless you absolutely know who you are giving it to.

We help our clients identify and thwart suspicious activity every day. Talk to us about our proven security solutions that can keep your team and business protected.

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