Fear Should not Drive a Hasty Purchase

When you surf the web, you must do so with security in mind. Part of that security means knowing about your PC, and not falling for scams that try to manipulate you with fear. One such scam uses a pop-up window that tells you your PC is infected with a virus. Coincidentally this pop-up also has a link to a program that will solve your problem. Ultimately the scammer wants your credit card information. You think you are buying a downloadable program. The scammer will have your credit card information and will begin making purchases at your expense ASAP.

Recently Finjan's Malicious Code Research Center discovered an "affiliate network" that gets paid for these referrals. They hack legitimate websites so that this pop-up will appear for you. The legitimate website is not aware at that time that they are being used. The hacker is paid $.096 per referral. Yes, less than a dime. In their investigation though, Finjan found that in a 16 day period, 1.8 million referrals were made. These users were redirected to the malicious site. The referral fees paid on 7,900 referrals would be $10,800 per day. And you know the only way these fees are being paid, is if the scammer is making more than that off innocent victim's credit card accounts.

Between 7 and 12 percent of the victims do install a useless or harmful program. They pay $50 for that. These fees can generate $172,000 in daily income, used to pay those referral fees. In addition, their credit card is now compromised.

Criminals employ these scams because they work. Based on the above, they could make $2 million a year. The easiest way to stop them is by educating the consumer so that purchases are not made. There are good free anti-virus programs available, your ISP may offer one at no additional cost to you and there are others you may purchase from legitimate sellers that do a good job. Don't let fear motivate you to make an instant purchase without research.