Data and cyber security risks with the new Track & Trace system

16th June 2020

Coronavirus Track and Trace Cyber Security

There’s been a lot of emphasis placed on the effectiveness of a track and trace system in the fight against Covid-19. It’s hard to disagree that a system which will help stop the virus is a good thing, but there are already signs that the companies behind the system aren’t doing the best job with personal data.

So what steps do you need to take to keep yourself safe? What do you need to watch out for? Is taking part in the system really a good idea at all? Here’s our considered advice about how best to protect yourself.

What is the new NHS test and trace system?
The Government needs a way to keep Covid-19 under control and one of the most effective ways to do that – as demonstrated by the experience of other countries – is an effective track and trace programme. Having information about who has the virus and where they are should allow a broader lifting of lockdown, with more localised restrictions imposed to control local outbreaks.

The idea is that when someone tests positive, a team of tracers tracks down people they have been in contact with during the time they were infectious and those people are also asked to isolate to stop the virus spreading further.

The UK’s track and trace system was launched in England and Scotland last week. It’s different to the app being developed to identify if a person has been in close proximity to someone later diagnosed with Covid-19, which is still being trialled on the Isle of White.

There have been a few hiccups along the way, not least the breach of data protection rules when one of the companies recruiting tracers shared their email addresses with others being recruited, leading to an apology.

If we can’t trust the companies involved with the system to look after their own employees’ data, can we really trust them to look after the personal and sometimes sensitive data of the general public? It’s not off to a good start, and public confidence is an absolute necessity if a track and trace system is to work.

What data and cyber security issues does the track and trace system present?
If you have a positive Covid-19 test you will be asked for lots of personal data, as well as data and contact information for people you have been in contact with.

If you have been in close contact with someone who later has a positive test for Covid-19 you may be contacted by phone, email or text message to ask you to self-isolate and you may need to give the NHS Test and Trace system your personal details.

But how would you know a call asking you to self-isolate was genuine? Dr Jenny Harries, the Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England, did little to allay fears about how people would know the contact was legitimate when the only reason she gave for someone to believe a call from the Test and Trace operation was genuine was that it would be very evident the callers are “professionally trained individuals”. So scammers can’t sound professional then? Not much of a reassurance.

The NHS website states: “Text messages will come from the NHS. Calls with come from 0300 0135000.” But we know it’s not too difficult to make texts look like they come from a certain organisation, and unless you save the number in your phone, a call from a similar number could be misconstrued as genuine.

Another security issue is in the length of time people’s data will be kept. Data of people with a positive Covid-19 test will be stored for 20 years. If you do not have a positive Covid-19 test your data will be stored for five years. A range of companies are involved in the storage of the data, so we’re relying on them to have the right processes and procedures in place to keep it safe.

Our best advice about engaging with NHS Test and Trace
The usual message about scam calls, texts and emails applies here. Be on your guard. Do not click through to any links in emails or texts. Do not give out personal data over the phone.

If you are asked to provide data, go directly to the official Test and Trace website rather than following links you are given.

Here’s what the official guidelines about the service say will happen:

call you from 0300 013 5000 (But this can be spoofed)
send you text messages from ‘NHS’ (But this can be spoofed)
ask for your full name and date of birth to confirm your identity, and postcode to offer support while self-isolating
ask if you are experiencing any coronavirus symptoms
provide advice on what you must do as you have been in contact with someone who has tested positive for coronavirus

And here’s what the guidelines say contact tracers will never:

ask you to dial a premium rate number to speak to us (for example, those starting 09 or 087)
ask you to make any form of payment or purchase a product of any kind
ask for any details about your bank account
ask for your social media identities or login details, or those of your contacts
ask you for any passwords or PINs, or ask you to set up any passwords or PINs over the phone
disclose any of your personal or medical information to your contacts
provide medical advice on the treatment of any potential coronavirus symptoms
ask you to download any software to your PC or ask you to hand over control of your PC, smartphone or tablet to anyone else
ask you to access any website that does not belong to the government or NHS

Be suspicious if anyone asks you for this kind of information. If you aren’t sure, use the principles of the Take 5 initiative, and stop to think before acting or giving out any information.

Ultimately, it’s your decision about whether you engage with the NHS Test and Trace programme. There are some very real risks, but many – although not all – can be managed if you take sensible precautions.

Staying safe from fraud – Covid19

13th May 2020

Covid19 prompts cyber security warning

Staying vigilant during the current pandemic doesn’t stop at washing your hands. Criminals are using Covid19 as a way to disguise their attempts to steal data and money, stealing £1.6m so far according to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau, so staying vigilant needs to extend to the way you look after yourself and your information online too.

The National Cyber Security Centre says that it has detected more UK government-branded scams relating to COVID-19 than any other subject. Levels of cyber crime haven’t necessarily increased, but it looks like the would-be criminals are using government and HMRC branding as a new route to try to obtain information.

What types of attacks are being attempted?

The types of attacks you could be vulnerable to include both phishing scams – where you receive an email purporting to be from an official body – and text messages (also referred to as smishing) made to look like they are from government, or particularly HMRC.

Emails can contain links which, if clicked, can download malicious software to your computer. This could leave you open to future ransom demands or could be recording the passwords you use to log in to services such as online banking.

Another option is the link might direct you to a website which looks like it’s official and ask you to enter details such as bank account information and/or personal data such as your name, address, date of birth and National Insurance Number.

Text messages can contain links to similar websites, or could encourage someone to call a phone number with astronomical charges.

Why attempt cyber crime now?

There’s a double-whammy at the moment which gives the fraudsters even more opportunities to pose as official bodies – the government support for business during the pandemic has led a lot of people to apply for various schemes online, so contact looking like it is from government or HMRC are more likely to be actioned. It’s also the time of year that people start to submit self-assessment tax returns, with reminders landing on doormats all over the UK. This gives another potentially legitimate cover for attempted cyber attacks.

What can you do to protect yourself?

Having appropriate cyber security in place is a good start, but the biggest risk in cyber crime is the actions of people. Some simple training can help you and your team to spot the risks and take steps to secure your business and systems from cyber attacks.

Take 5 is a campaign to raise awareness of the need to think before acting in order to stop online fraud. Their website contains lots of resources you can use in your company to raise awareness about the impact of personal actions on whether or not fraudsters are successful.

For a more comprehensive training package, CybSafe is the GCHQ-accredited online training package which takes your team through a series of modules and tests their knowledge, giving you a dashboard with insight about how they perform. It will even send fake phishing emails and report on who falls for them.

Cyber Essentials is a package of technical support and training which gives you a certification (needed for some tenders and contracts). It will give you insight into your cyber security risks and runs scans and vulnerability checks to catch weaknesses in your website before criminals do.

What can you do if you’re a victim of cyber crime?

You are likely to need the support of a cyber security expert to help recover what you can and protect against a similar attack in the future. Chat to us about how we can support you with this.

If you need a crime number, perhaps for insurance purposes if you’re insured against cyber crime, you’ll need to report the incident to Action Fraud, the UK’s National Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting Centre.

If you need support to defend against Covid19-related or any other type of cyber attacks, get in touch to find out how we can support you and your business.

Preventing Ransomware

19th July 2019

Image by Tumisu from Pixabay

Ransomware is a growing concern for many businesses. According to Europol research, ransomware was the biggest cyber threat in 2018. In 2017 the now infamous WannaCry and NotPetya attacks affected around 300,000 victims worldwide.

Ransomware encrypts all of the files on your system and holds them to ransom. The attackers will demand a payment, usually in bitcoins, in exchange for the key to decrypt your files. Ransomware also comes with the risk that the data affected will be leaked online.

Why You Shouldn’t Pay Ransomware Demands

If you become victim of ransomware and are desperate to get your data back, it can be tempting just to give into their demands. However, this is usually a bad idea.

There’s no guarantee that you’ll get your files back. The attackers are under no obligation to uphold their end of the bargain. Even if the attacker does give you the decryption key, they're not likely to care or offer help solving the problem.

You may be targeted for future attacks. If the attacker believes your business will easily give into their demands, then they may attempt to double dip. You may become the target of other types of attack, or other cyber crime groups may target your business.

Decryptors that can reverse some strains of ransomware are available.

As with all cyber security matters, prevention is better than remediation. Fortunately, there are many tools and techniques you can access to protect your business.

Backups

The most important step you can take to protect your business from ransomware is to put in place a plan for backing up your data. Backing up data protects your business from data loss, and prevents such incidents from leaving you unable to operate. You can use the backups to to perform a wipe and restore of your system, removing the ransomware without paying.

Online backups are the easiest and most accessible option for most businesses. These can back up your data automatically on a regular schedule, and they make restoring data faster and easier than other methods.

Fully featured backup services, such as CodeGuard, also allow you manage your backups and track changes made. With this you can ensure that no one is tampering with your backups.

Physical backups, using portable hard drives or USB sticks, are also effectively. However, these need to be updated manually.

Keeping backups in multiple formats is the ideal, with both cloud and physical storage.

Phishing Detection

Phishing, usually executed through emails, is the most common vector for malware attacks, including ransomware. There are common signs that can give away a fake email, including poor spelling and grammar, suspiciously long links hidden behind anchor texts.

Educating your employees on how to spot fraudulent emails can cut the risk of cyber attacks significantly.

Our CybSafe and Cyber Essentials packages can give your business the tools needed to stay informed.

Patch and Update

Outdated technology and legacy software are vulnerable to exploitation from ransomware and other cyber attacks. Make sure that you use technology that is supported by its creator and regularly updated.

It can be difficult to keep track of what needs updating, especially if you’re using software with many plugins or extras.

Our Vulnerability Scans for example can look over your CMS are inform you if any plugins are out of date or susceptible to attack.

If you are vigilant and take the proper measures, you can prevent ransomware from infecting your system, or at least mitigate the worst damage.

Introduction to Sextortion Emails

21st March 2019

You look through your new emails and spot something with a severe warning in the subject. The content makes some worrying claims. They hacked into your webcam and filmed you watching porn. They also have your email contacts, and are threatening to send the footage to each one of them. Just to make the message even more convincing, they seem to know one of your passwords. Of course, you can spare yourself the humiliation by making a small payment in bitcoins.

And you only have twenty four hours to comply, or else.

This is the usual premise behind Sextortion emails, a scam which blackmails its victims into paying up to save face.

A typical threat may read something similar to this;

"I'm aware, XXXXXX is your password. You don't know me and you're probably thinking why you are getting this mail, right?

Well, I actually placed a malware on the adult video clips (porno) web site and guess what, you visited this website to experience fun (you know what I mean). While you were watching video clips, your internet browser started out working as a RDP (Remote Desktop) with a key logger which gave me access to your display screen as well as web camera. Just after that, my software program gathered every one of your contacts from your Messenger, Facebook, and email.

What did I do?

I made a double-screen video. First part shows the video you were watching (you have a nice taste omg), and 2nd part displays the recording of your webcam.

Exactly what should you do?

Well, I believe, $2900 is a fair price tag for our little secret. You'll make the payment by Bitcoin (if you do not know this, search "how to buy bitcoin" in Google).

BTC Address: 1HpXtDRumKRhaFTXXXXXXXXXX

(It is cAsE sensitive, so copy and paste it)

Important:

You now have one day to make the payment. (I have a special pixel within this email message, and now I know that you have read this e mail). If I do not receive the BitCoins, I will definately send out your video recording to all of your contacts including close relatives, co-workers, and many others. Nevertheless, if I receive the payment, I'll destroy the video immidiately. If you need evidence, reply with "Yes!" and I will send your video to your 10 friends. It is a non-negotiable offer, therefore do not waste my time and yours by responding to this message."

So am I in Danger?

The good news is that these emails are bluffing. They likely haven’t been watching you. The passwords, or any other information they have on you, was likely acquired from a data breach from another website.

Sextortion is a good example of how cyber criminals will create a sense of urgency to bypass the victims critical thinking. The thought that a malicious party has damning footage of you may scare you into acting quickly to save yourself.

When you’re scared, you don’t think straight, and are more susceptible to believing the scammer. The sprinkling of your password, or other data, adds a hint of legitimacy to their threats and could lead you to believing they actually know something.

The success of these scams relies on balancing the danger with the likelihood. The warning needs to be dire enough to inspire you to take action, but believable enough for you to not dismiss it immediately.

Other Sextortion style scams have attempted to push the boat out further, with more outlandish claims proving less successful. One such version even threatened the victim with a hired assassin, which proved too difficult to take seriously. On the other hand, since plenty of people watch porn, those threats will elicit more responses.

Understanding this is the key to see through a range of online scams, including phishing or tech support scams.

How do I Handle Sextortion Emails?

When handling Sextortion emails, don’t take any threats at face value. Like all suspicious emails, don’t click on any links or attachments that may have been included. These can be vectors for malware. You can simply delete the email.

If you spotted any of your passwords in the message, it’s worth taking precautions. Have I been Pwned can tell you if your email address has been compromised in any data breaches. The password section can inform you if the password was leaked. You should consider changing the password in either case.

If you have a habit of reusing passwords, then this needs remedying, since information leaked in breaches could be used to break into other accounts. Using a password manager can help you select better passwords and make each one different without needing you to remember all of them.

Fully featured email servers give you the option of creating filters to block potentially harmful messages. Since Sextortion messages often use similar language it’s easy to create a filter that will block the majority of them. This saves you the hassle of dealing with more scams.

Whatever you do, don't give these crooks a single penny.

Preventing BEC Attacks

22nd February 2019

Photo by rawpixel on Unsplash

Business Email Compromise (BEC) attacks have increased by almost 500% over the previous year. They are the most common cyber threat to businesses today, and can result in losses to finances and reputation.

BECs are social engineering attacks made against employees of a business. The criminal attempts to impersonate a contact of the employee, whether that be a higher up in the business or an external supplier. Unlike regular phishing, where a criminal may send out many emails, BEC attacks tend to focus on one employee, who is groomed into trusting the attacker.

Once the victim has been deceived the attacker will request a transaction. The victim will believe it to be legitimate, but in fact the criminal is siphoning the money for themselves. In worse case scenarios the criminal might pull of multiple cons.

BEC attacks are also vectors for malware and ransomware attacks. These can be very damaging to a business.

How Can I Protect My Business From BEC Attacks?

The key to keeping your business secure is to educate your employees on the risks and how to keep safe. Employees should be taught how to spot and evade fraudulent emails. Up to date technology and procedures can also reduce the risks of BEC attacks.

Avoiding Opening Emails From Unknown Parties

The safest way to avoid risk is to not click the email in the first place. Employees should check the address of the sender carefully for any differences that might be a sign of a spoofed address. This could include "l" with "1" or a subtle misspelling that could easily be overlooked.

Check Links

Links in emails can be disguised using anchor text. You can reveal the true destination by hovering over the link. A box next to the cursor or in the bottom corner of the browser will display the real address the link leads to. Investigate these carefully. Fraudulent links may try to mimic a real address.

Avoid Attachments

Attachments are one of the most common methods criminals use to distribute malware. Unknown attachments must never be opened. Even attachments you are expecting should be scanned by up to date anti malware before being accepted.

Use a Company Domain

Using free web-based emails accounts for your business makes it easier for criminals to spoof your addresses. You should create a company domain and use it for your email accounts instead. Criminals may still try to mimic the address, but diligent employees will be able to spot the inconsistencies.

As well as protecting your business, customers are more likely to trust an email if it comes from a branded email address.

Verify Money Transfers

Creating a procedure for money and data transfers can prevent careless losses. Any transfers should be verified with another member of staff through face to face or telephone call, using previously established numbers. You should not rely on any contact methods suggested by the email, especially if they differ from the norm.

Consider What Information Your Are Putting Online

Cyber criminals can use the information you put online to enhance their facades. They use this data to build profiles of employees in preparation for grooming them as part of their phishing attempts. This can include names, addresses, job titles and descriptions.

Posting details about holidays can clue criminals to when key figures will be out of the office. This can present them with the best opportunities to attack. Keep the holiday photos for when you return.

Keeping social media accounts private can prevent criminals from trawling them for data.

Keep Anti-Malware Updated

Using the latest anti-virus and malware technology can catch harmful payloads often distributed by email. Malware is constantly evolving, so it is vital to regularly updated your software to keep up.

Email Authentication

Using email authentication, such as SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, can protect you from email spoofing.

Email authentication gives the sender a way of proving that an email comes from who it claims to be from. Without it, a criminal can more easily pretend to be someone from the company when sending out their fake emails.

Emails that fail the authentication process should end up in the spam folder or outright rejected. With DMARC you can even get reports whenever there has been an attempt at abusing your domain.

Not only does email authentication protect your employees, but it prevents criminals from scamming your customers, as messages that fail validation will be sent to the spam folder or rejected.

Keeping your emails secure takes time and effort, but is a necessary step in ensuring the safety of your business and its customers.

Recommended Services

Take a look at our DMARC management service and let us provide you with insight into the security of your email domain.

Increase the cyber resilience of your staff with our Cyber Security Training platform.

Guide to Safe Online Shopping for Christmas

21st November 2018

As the holiday season fast approaches you will be on a race to do all your shopping in time. Online shopping makes the hassle of getting prepared for Christmas easier than ever before. No more shifting through shelves or waiting in queues. Now you can shop in the comfort of your own home. However, this comes at risk because the rising trend of cyber crime. Over the past years there has been a 45% increase of reported shopping fraud(1).

The huge number of shoppers, combined with Black Friday and Cyber Monday rushes, provide cyber criminals the perfect chance to set a scam into action on a wide range of people. They can harvest large amounts of personal information or credit card details from unsuspecting victims.

Fortunately, there are ways to keep yourself safe online and prevent any nasty surprises this Christmas. Here you can find the advice you need to keep your money and personal details safe when shopping online.

Shopping Safely

While you will be looking to find the best deals, you should be wary of crooks trying to lure you in. In 2016 there was an estimated £10 billion loss to individuals as a result of cyber fraud(2), and it is estimated that £16 million was lost due to shopping fraud at Christmas(3).

The most common items used in online fraud at Christmas include popular brands of clothing and makeup, as well as gadgets like iPhones and watches. The newer and more desirable an item is the easier it is for criminals to entice their victims with the promise of a huge discount.

When shopping online you can protect yourself from potential cons by keeping the following advice in mind:

Only purchase from websites with HTTPS in the address. Websites using regular HTTP cannot secure your personal or bank details. HTTPS will encrypt your details when you send them through the website, meaning hackers will not be able to read them. Most browsers, including Chrome and Firefox, will alert you if a website is not secured with a warning in the URL bar. A closed padlock symbol in the URL signifies the website is using HTTPS. Check before making a purchase.

Example of Google Chrome's warning.

Make sure your computer has trusted antivirus software which is constantly updated. These tools can warn you if a website contains security threats. Over 360,000 new malware threats are detected each day(4), so keeping your antivirus updated is vital to staying on top.

If a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is. It is easy for criminals to create authentic looking product images and webpages to make their offers seem more legit. Apply some scepticism when faced with a dream offer. If a website is giving a bigger discount than every other outlet, especially on the latest products, then consider that all is not as it seems.

Buy from trusted retailers as much as possible. If you come across an unfamiliar site, then you should always do research before making any purchases. If you cannot find any information on the seller, then avoid them. When purchasing tickets, always buy them from official sources and not resellers.

Online auctions can net you some bargains, but you should exercise caution. Goods can arrive late or not at all, or the seller might not be truthful about the product they are offering.

Before placing a bid, you should inspect the item and its description carefully. You should also look up the seller’s history and the reviews of previous buyers. If the seller has little history or if people are leaving complaints, then it is best to avoid them.

One way of protecting yourself is to use secure payment methods, such as Paypal. Avoid paying by money transfers as these are not secure. Do not send any confidential or financial information to seller using email.

Avoid Phishing Scams

Phishing scams are ever present online, but extra care should be taken when Christmas shopping, because it is easy for scams to get mixed in with real messages. For example, you may receive emails claiming to be from Amazon, saying that you need to log into your account for whatever reason, with a link included in the email. If you have been making many purchases, then you can expect confirmation and shipping messages. It is easy for phishing emails to hide among the real messages, and you might be more susceptible to trusting them.

Phishing scams prey on your fears to you act without thinking. At Christmas time this might include an important gift getting lost in delivery, or that your account has been compromised.

Phishing scams can be avoided by applying some common sense rules when dealing with emails:

Avoid visiting websites via emailed links as these can be lead to spoofed webpages designed to steal your login details. Instead, visit the actual website from your URL bar or bookmarks to ensure you land on the real site. If your are seriously curious about the message, you can check the links by hovering over them without clicking. A box will appear next to your cursor or in the corner of the browser displaying the true URL address. Do not trust what the link says in the email as these can be faked. For example, an email may claim to link to amazon.com, but hovering over it reveals a seemly unrelated, misspelt, or nonsensical URL.

Check the spelling and grammar of the emails. Any mistakes are a certain sign of fraud. Also beware of vague language. For example, if a message addresses you impersonally, then it is likely a spam email sent out to millions.

Do not interact with any attachments included within the email. These can contain malware that can infect your computer. It can take as much as just clicking on the attachment to become infected.

Some online retailers, such as Amazon, offer package tracking which you can use to view the progress delivery. These should be used over trusting an email warning.

Another common form of phishing is through SMS messages, or smishing. These messages will request you visit a link or calling back on a premium number. The same kind of precautions can protect you. Do not call the numbers or follow the links. If you think the message could be real then visit the website directly and check. Do not trust unsolicited messages in general, even if they appear to come from an official source at first glance.

Browser Plugins and Phone Apps

Browser plugins can potentially be used to find discounts on products online. These plugins inform you of other better prices online whenever you are looking at a product. However, these plugins can also contain unexpected features, such as tracking your movement online.

When looking for plugins, only install them from the official web store of whatever device or browser you are using. Do not download from third party sites. Never follow a pop up advertising a plugin, even if it is advertising what looks like an official plugin. If a website is trying to force you into downloading a plugin then leave immediately.

Plugins and extensions will often ask you to grant them permissions. It is a good idea to check what these permissions are before installing to make sure they are in line with the services the extension claims to offer. If you see anything unusual or unnecessary, then consider avoiding the extension.

By keeping these precautions in mind, you can avoid getting scammed this Christmas and help ensure everything runs smoothly during the festive season.

Refs

1.https://www.moneywise.co.uk/news/2017-12-05/scam-watch-christmas-shopping-fraud-rises-quarter

2.https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Online-Fraud.pdf

3.https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42085557

4.https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/360k-new-malware-samples-every-day/

Introduction to Tech Support Scams

8th October 2018

Among the more common scams used by cyber criminals is the fake technical support service. Phone calls from Microsoft technicians and pop-ups warning of viruses are just a couple of the hallmarks of this con.

Tech support scams prey on the victim’s lack of IT knowledge to fool them into thinking there is something wrong with their computer. The victims are then conned into paying for an expensive service or downloading software in order to “fix” their problems. These services often entail giving the scammers remote access to their computer. This is their gateway to performing more malicious activity, which include theft of personal information and passwords or inserting more malware for future attacks.

In the past these types of scams have taken the form of cold calling. The scammers pretend to be a Microsoft technician to gain the victim's trust. They then talk the victim through various steps to fool them into believing their computer is compromised.

Phishing emails and pop-up ads are also popular methods of reaching victims. Sometimes these pop-ups go as far as to mimic Windows error messages. Those with low IT literacy can struggle to distinguish between the real and fake messages.

Newer Techniques

Scammers have been getting their schemes in front of victims using paid advertisements. When someone has a technical problem their first action is usually to look up a solution using a search engine. Services that appear as paid ads will seem more trustworthy in the eyes of potential victims and more likely to draw them in. Creating a convincing looking website, which can lure in victims, is simple for experienced crooks.

It has reached the point where Google are planning a special verification system to root out these fake ad (report by Naked Security). And in a recent development criminal have been exploiting un-patched WordPress plug-ins to redirect visitors to their scams (report by Malwarebytes).

How to protect yourself

The first important thing to remember is that companies like Microsoft will never make unsolicited contact with you. If you are contacted by anyone claiming to be from Microsoft or Apple, then it is best to assume fraud and hang up. Also note that no one can "remotely detect" viruses on your computer, and Window or Mac error messages will never require you to ring telephone numbers or email an address.

Keep calm when confronted with warnings. When you are presented with a dire message, it is only natural to want to act fast. Phishing emails and ads from scammers rely on urgent language to bypass rational thinking. Next time someone online tells you your computer has been compromised, stop and think.

If you get an email issuing urgent warnings, do not click and links or attachments. These may lead to fake web pages or contain malware. Keep an eye open for poor spelling and grammar in emails. These are obvious signs of unprofessional pretenders.

Taking a more proactive approach to protecting your computer from Malware can help you escape pitfalls. Do research into trusted anti-virus and anti-malware tools and get them set up early. These tools can detect malware planted by scammers and warn you about malicious downloads. If you know who you can turn to for help, then you can avoid suspicious characters online.

Proper training can help your staff avoid the pitfalls of tech support scams and other phishing attempt. Training programs such as CySafe can boost the vigilance of your staff and reduce the risk of them falling prey to phishing..

These kinds of scams can be easily avoided so long as you are vigilant and never take online ads at face value.