How to protect against the most common online scams

In Luxembourg, the Bee Secure initiative spreads awareness on how to improve internet security. The service offers information on protective measures to avoid falling prey to scammers, and also advises people who have been victims of online crime. RTL spoke to the service's Igor Loran regarding the most common online scams and how best to protect against them.

The experts at Bee Secure say they often see classic scams, but nowadays criminals are getting creative. A common scam making the rounds is "phishing", usually via an email in which the victim is encouraged to click on a link. Doing so permits the scammers to access the victim's data or their money. These frequently take the form of messages such as "your parcel was unable to be delivered", "you have won a competition" or "you haven't paid a fine". The sites linked often look like legitimate websites and even email addresses can be spoofed to appear real.

The criminals who use these phishing attempts most effectively are often well-informed about the area they are targeting in order to tailor the messages to appear more realistic. For example, when the Luxtrust token was phased out, numerous scams popped up imitating Luxtrust in an attempt to trick people into registering via another message. Loran says:  "This showed they knew the country and the situation very well." Luxembourg police also confirmed this.

The Grand Duchy is just as affected by scams as its neighbouring nations, as criminals tailor each scam to each region. Luxembourg is often targeted by criminals due to its status of wealth, says Loran. This means there are plenty of opportunities to find victims who are vulnerable to scams and have sufficient money, who can be contacted in a variety of languages.

On some occasions criminals don't need to resort to phishing if they already possess enough of their victim's data to convince them of legitimacy. For example, they can pose as online support service staff to convince their victim their PC is infected, and that they need to gain access to the computer in order to resolve it. Once they have been given remote access, the scammers can log into the victim's online banking and empty their account.

A particularly insidious scam involves playing a game with victims where money transfers are doubled, explains the Bee Secure expert. The victim transfers 50 euros, the scammer does 100, and so on until the scammer disappears. This allows for large sums of money to accumulate quickly.

"Finfluencing", or influencers in the financial sector, is becoming a more frequent phenomenon within the scam industry. Here, victims are encouraged to invest in dubious cryptocurrency or Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) schemes. A good rule of thumb, says Loran, is that if it sounds too good to be true, it's likely a scam. What incentive would an influencer have to tell others about their apparently successful business model? "You should never invest in things you aren't familiar with or do not understand the business model driving it", says the expert.

If you fall victim to a scam, contact the police immediately. Preserve as much evidence as possible, such as screen captures, links and so on, advises Loran. If your account has been breached, contact your bank straight away as this can prevent your money being debited in certain circumstances.

For many victims, however, there is more to it than financial harm. The feeling of shame can prevent them from sharing it with others. "Talking about it to your family, or spouse, can become a personal crisis," says Loran.

If possible, contact Bee Secure if you encounter anything unusual. This enables the service to detect the most common cybercrime scams thanks to reports from the public.