Social media is a great way to meet and connect with others. Influencers can give away prizes to engage with their followers, and their followers get to support content creators. This is modern day mutualism, however, this means that there are many ways for social media users to be left vulnerable to scammers and hackers. Here are some of scams to be cautious of:
Direct messages
- Chatting with people online can be a lot of fun, and a great way to meet new people. However, we need to be weary of direct messages that will send you an unknown link. This link can compromise your account.
- Messages that ask you to buy products to make money or easy money are likely a scam as well.
- Messages from unknown people claiming to want to build a friendship or relationship, but then ask you for money, are scams.
Online ads
- Retail therapy can be very exciting, but not when buying from sketchy websites that might steal your credit card information. Try and see if the company has any reviews. Check to see if an online store is credible before purchasing at a new place online, or buy from reputable shops.
- If a product being sold seems too good to be true, then it probably is.
Prizes
- Lottery and gift card scams are very common online. These will claim that you’ve won the lottery and will ask for your bank account information in order to “send you the money” but hackers will end up draining your bank account instead.
- Similarly, with a gift card hackers will ask you to buy a gift card so they can “transfer more money to it” but once you send them the card information your money will be gone. An e-gift card will steal your personal information and hackers will use that information to commit identity fraud.
