In Brief: A surge in online scams has erupted following the California wildfires, specifically an increase in the number of fraudulent websites looking to take advantage of unsuspecting visitors. Users can protect themselves by taking advantage of practical tips, such as checking website URLs, evaluating website design, and researching contact details and reviews.
Like clockwork, fraudulent actors frequently pop up whenever a crisis arises, and the recent California wildfires are no exception. Recently, the threat of fraud targeting both victims and good Samaritans of the wildfires has spiked so dramatically that Visa even issued a scam alert to educate people on what to watch for.
Visa’s Top Two Warnings Share an Alarming Connection
The entire alert bulletin is worth checking out, but it’s the top two items that really stand out. The fraudulent activity they share is one that is becoming increasingly difficult to discern…the deceptive website. As technology and criminals become more advanced, the risk of falling victim to a fraudulent website has grown rampant and learning how to identify one has become critical.
More specifically, Visa’s scam alert highlights two particular tactics:
1. Fake or Fraudulent Charities: Cyber criminals will create fake charity websites to encourage unsuspecting victims to donate money. Often, they’ll emulate a known charity or steal someone’s identity to create a donation page through services like GoFundMe. The quality of these sites has dramatically increased, often resulting in a page that can look indistinguishable from the legitimate site at first glance.
2. Wildfire-themed Websites: Visa has noticed an increase in the number of newly created URLs that incorporate a wildfire naming convention. Similar to the purpose of a fake charity website, these pages are created with the intent of either getting users to donate money or provide their personal information in order to steal their identity.
How to Identify a Fraudulent Website
Despite the improved sophistication of this tactic, there are still some basic things you can do to protect yourself from being deceived. We’ve put together a list of five effective tactics you can arm yourself with to avoid falling victim to a fraudulent website. These are great things to keep in mind anytime you’re online.
1. Check the URL and Domain
A secure website will begin with https:// instead of http://. The “s” stands for secure and means that the site is encrypted. Sites that do not end in https:// do not have that extra layer of security.
Additionally, fraudulent websites will attempt to mislead you with the domain name by either misspelling words or creating a slight variation of the domain. For example, PayPal’s legitimate website is paypal.com. A fraudster may create a website with the domain that is pay-pal.com or paypa1.com.
2. Examine the Design
Admittedly, this is getting harder to discern, especially with the advent of AI design tools. But pay close attention to the design of a website. If it feels very unprofessionally designed or includes broken website functionality, misspelled words, poor grammar, or low-quality images, take caution.
3. Check the Contact Info
Fraudulent websites will often avoid listing contact information on the site. If they do, it may be a fake address or phone number. If anything seems suspicious, do a Google search of the business to see if the address or phone number match what Google has listed. You can also call the phone number and speak to someone directly to confirm the legitimacy of the website.
4. Beware of Deals That Are Too Good to Be True
Trust your gut. If the deals listed on the site seem too good to be true, they probably are. Fraudsters will try to reel you in with an offer designed to catch people before they’ve had a chance to think about it. This means pricing on items may be dramatically lower than you’ve seen advertised in the past or the site makes mention of limited-time offers to inflate a sense of urgency.
5. Look for Reviews
Once again, Google can be your best friend. Do a Google search with the company name and the word scam or fraud. Chances are, you’re not the first person to stumble across this site, and if there have been incidents of fraud, people share that information on social platforms and other forums.
You can also use reputation tools such as Trustpilot to find independent validation of a company’s legitimacy. Another option would be to do a WHOIS lookup through GoDaddy. If a website was recently created and registered, it is much more likely to be fraudulent.
Always Proceed with Caution
In the end, the best word of advice to identify a fraudulent website is to stay on guard. The suggestions above are a great starting point, but you must always remain vigilant and use common sense when browsing the web. In today’s environment where online fraudsters are becoming more and more sophisticated, a little dose of healthy skepticism will go a long way to help you stay safe.
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