(This is the text of my weekly Loose Wire Service column, syndicated to newspapers like The Jakarta Post. My thanks to Joe Wein for the information that made this column possible.) A lot of people think that online scams happen to other people, but they don’t. They could happen to you. Or a relative, new … Read more
It’s interesting, if you like this kind of thing, to see how online scams learn from each other. Until recently I thought of the Nigeria 419 scam — where you’re contacted by some grieving African widow, burdened with millions that she wants to share with you, if only you’ll let her park it in your … Read more
Amid the increasing sophistication of online scams, it’s easy to forget that sometimes the simplest tricks are the most effective. These involve a phone, a victim and a bit of social engineering. And they work best when people are silly, which is what the holiday season is all about. WLUC TV6 reports from Michigan of a … Read more
Good piece today by my WSJ colleague Cassell Bryan-Low on the Douglas Havard case which I mentioned a week or so back: As Identity Theft Moves Online, Crime Rings Mimic Big Business (subscription only, I suspect): Most identity theft still occurs offline, through stolen cards or rings of rogue waiters and shop clerks in cahoots with … Read more
I don’t really need to introduce this piece from Sam Varghese of the Sydney Morning Herald. It touches on a theme I’ve harped on before: How banks still don’t understand phishing and how it has changed consumer attitudes, and how it must change the way banks approach the Internet. Phishy behaviour or harmless spin points … Read more