Spot the Scam: Venmo, Coinbase, Walmart Survey, Dangerous Dating Sites, and Amazon Prime
Author: Trend Micro
The latest scams this week include Venmo, Coinbase, Walmart Survey, Dangerous Dating Sites, and Amazon Prime. Did you see anything similar in your inbox? Check how these 5 hot scams work and learn tips to avoid them.
Venmo Scams
We have observed several scam cases in the name of Venmo in different versions, such as phishing text messages and scam emails:
1. Venmo Phishing Text Messages
Scammers impersonate Venmo and send you text messages about a “deposit confirmation.” If you fall for it and click on the link in the message, you will be taken to a phishing website. Then scammers will trick you into entering personal information like bank details or Venmo login credentials. With the data you provide, they can transfer all your money away, take control over your Venmo account, or even steal your identity.
Venmo phishing text message. Source: Twitter
Content
Venmo Deposit Confirmation. $100 please confirm needleialarm[.] com/ lr29ZIP
2. Fake Venmo Payment Notification Email
Venmo scams also come in as fake emails. Posing as Venmo, scammers send you an email, falsely claiming that your Venmo account just received an amount of money. Then they instruct you to send out a package immediately to get the payment. Sounds confusing, right?
That’s the goal. Scammers then say that you can contact the customer service via the email addresses they provide. But, if you take a closer look, you will realize that these email addresses are not legitimate. Genuine Venmo support contact should be support@venmo.com, according to Venmo official website.
Venmo email scam. Source: Twitter
Content
venmo Dear We hereby inform you that the sum of $900.00 USD has been paid to your Venmo account by (@Anthony) using PayPal method. In our efforts to protect all merchant transactions, We have now received payments for your item from our secure server. This is to ensure that the seller and buyer do their responsibility in every transaction we handle,this Venmo User Protection Policy methods have been taken due to fraudulent sellers. You are now required to ship out the (Package) via next day delivery and forward the shipment reference number and receipt to us for verification. Your account will be credited immediately after the shipment number has been confirmed. If you have any issues, please email us at venmoservice@email.com or § uDDortvenmo@email.cz and our customer service will attend to you. Help us to serve you better. Thank you for using Venmo! The Venmo Team
Coinbase Smishing Attack
The popularity of cryptocurrency attracts not only investors but also scammers! Last month we have reported about this fake Coinbase text messages, and now it goes viral again:
Coinbase phishing text message. Source: Reddit
Content
COINBASE: A withdrawal has been attempted from a new device. If this was not you, follow the steps here: https://cbsuDDort.smsb[ . ]co
Scammers send text messages with phishing links from Coinbase, falsely claiming that there are issues with your account and ask you to check account status via the link. If you submit your login information, scammers can take over your account!
Walmart Survey Scam
This week we have detected 4 times more Walmart-related text message scam cases. To convince you to click on the phishing link in the text messages, scammers either claim the packages you have ordered is on the way or tell you that you have won in their giveaway campaign:
- -Walmart: Hi, Justin! Your parcel is on its way to you. Check your delivery address here. <URL>
- -Congratulations Julie! You are this month’s winner of our Special Walmart Giveaway. Check here <URL> Valid till 06/03/2021 -STOP to end
- -APPLICATION ACCEPTED! Kathy, We have reviewed your application and you have been accepted! UNLOCK Premium Walmart benefits NOW <URL>
Once you click on it, you will be taken to a fake Walmart online survey page that says you can get an iPad Pro as a reward after completing the questionnaire:
After that, you have to provide your credit card number, expiration date, and even CVC code for the delivery of your gift. Of course, no gifts will ever appear. Instead, scammers will record the sensitive credentials you have submitted and can use them for other scams such as identity theft. Does the story sound familiar? Yes, you are right. We have written about different online survey scams for many times, for example, Apple.
Fake Dating Site Scam
It’s embarrassing to receive text messages saying “Hi there! My alluring hazel eyes and beautiful smile will welcome you at the door,” especially when they lead to scam dating sites. Be cautious and don’t click on anything!
Fake dating site scam message. Source: Reddit
Content
Subject: Hi there! My alluring hazel eyes and beautiful kathleencohen [ . ] club smile will welcome you at the door_
Many people have receive this message recently. The link provideed will lead you to an explicit site- randomly to pages named “Better Tinder” or “Dirty Tinder.”
With Trend Micro Check Chrome extension pinned on the upper-right corner, scam pages will be blocked immediately.
We also found that if you reload the pages for a few times, you will end up in this website that looks like a video player. Again, DO NOT click on anything. You can be taken to another website and asked to provide sensitive personal information. Or, in a worse situation, malware will start to download once you click on any malicious link.
Besides, a browser notification will appear and prompt you to allow notifications from this website. Even if you click on the Close button, it will appear again and again. What’s the danger?
Once you click the “Allow” button, the website can send you notifications and include malicious content, luring you to visit other scam websites and conduct other scams. Please be careful!
Amazon Prime/Father’s Day Scams
Amazon Prime Day was just over, but not Amazon scams. This week we have observed many Amazon Prime phishing text messages, and some of them even use Father’s Day to attract your attention:
- Forgot to order a Father’s Day Gift? Good news… Amazon Prime is still offering FREE 1-day shipping on Kings Loot Wallets. This is the last call of last calls! Reply STOP to opt out
- Add Your Rent, Netflix & Amazon Prime to your Credit Report to increase your Score! Start below, It’s Free!
- Zinzanzoan, you still have $130 Amazon Rewards credit: See what you can buy before it expires on 03/26
- Order confirmed: You can add more items until we start packing your Amazon Fresh order:
- Amazon: Kurt your order has been SHIPPED to: 5173 W Wabansia Ave, Philadelphia! Confirm delivery time:
- Dear 9674XXXX48 Increase Your Company Profits. Open Free Amazon Business A/C
No matter which trick you fall into, once you click on the phishing link in the text message, it will lead you to a fake online survey page and ask you to finish it for free “Yearly Amazon Prime Membership.”
After that you will have to “sign up” and enter personal information. This is when you hand in sensitive credentials to scammers!
You will be redirected again and prompted to provide more sensitive data. Do not do that!
How to Protect Yourself
- Double-check the sender’s mobile number/email address.
- Reach out to the official website or customer support directly for help.
- Too-good-to-be-true offers are a major red flag.
- NEVER click links or attachments from unknown sources. Use Trend Micro Check to detect scams with ease!
Send a link or a screenshot of suspicious text messages to Trend Micro Check on WhatsApp for immediate scam detection:
Trend Micro Check is available on WhatsApp.
Trend Micro Check is also available as a Chrome extension.
It will block dangerous sites for you automatically:
Or download Trend Micro Maximum Security for a wider range of protection, including Web Threat Protection, Ransomware Protection, Anti-phishing and Anti-spam Protection, Privacy Scanner for Facebook and Twitter, Social Networking Protection, and Parental Controls.
Did you successfully spot the scams? Remember, always CHECK before your next move.
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