8.4 Internet scams and spam

Imposter

(phishing, phone calls, etc.)

Craigslist Scam

A website where people can list items for sale. Its an Internet scam where a seller receives an email from a buyer offering to buy an item. The buyer pays by check (or money order) and requests immediate shipment of the item. The seller deposits the check and sends the item, but in a few weeks the seller is notified of insufficient funds to cover the check. The seller has no means to get back the sent item.

How spamers make money

One way is through referrals: A referrer sets up an account with a legitimate business like an online pharmacy, and then refers customers to an account-specific URL at that business (like http://somebusiness.aaa.zzz/account555); the business gives the referrer a percentage of sales. The spammer uses spam to try to refer customers to that URL. A spammer may operate a business, like a porn site or gambling site, and attracts customers directly via spam. Customers pay a fee to access the site. Another way is through botnets; the spammer spreads a virus to gain control of thousands of computers, and then rents usage of those computers to others (typically for malicious purposes like denial-of-service attacks or sending more spam).

Spam

Unwanted mass-sent email.spam Most spam advertises products or sites (often porn sites). Some (about 5%) is used for phishing or spreading malware (like viruses). Because spam costs the sender almost nothing, spam has grown tremendously, making up 50%-80% of all Internet email traffic in 2014.

Internet Scam

a dishonest scheme or fraud using the Internet. The Internet has been filled with scams since the Internet's rise in the 1990's. Internet scams cost individuals and companies hundreds of billions of dollars per year. A wise Internet user keeps a careful watch out for scams.

419 scam/ Nigerian scam

a particular scam where the scammer establishes contact with an individual to help with a business transaction like transferring money out of a country, for which the individual will supposedly receive a large payment. These scams are sometimes called Nigerian scams due to a famous scam email involving a supposed Nigerian prince, or 419 scams due to the Nigerian criminal code number dealing with fraud. While many such scams may have originated in Nigeria, many have nothing to do with Nigeria.

Phishing

an Internet scam that baits a user to share sensitive information like a password or credit card number. The word derives from "fishing", where one puts out bait and hopes a fish will bite. The most common phishing approach sends email to a user, appearing to legitimately be from a known organization like PayPal, Amazon, Bank of America, UPS, the government, or a person's own employer. Modern email systems like Gmail or Yahoo filter most such email directly to a spam folder, but some spam emails occasionally get through.

slamy slicing

steal a small amount nd the people who do it assume that they won't notice because it is a small amount.

90%

what percentage of emails are spam?