New scam on Amazon: If you’re not careful, your money is gone

Your Amazon account is a popular target for cyber criminals because it contains payment information and other sensitive personal data. Data theft usually occurs using a phishing email. Such a scam is currently circulating, which is why you should be particularly careful if you have an Amazon account.

The extremely long subject immediately reveals the pretext the scammers are using to obtain your personal information: “Your account has been deactivated due to unusual login attempts from an unknown device or location. Please update your account information immediately.”

The temporary suspension of your account is only for your security. Three possible reasons for the deactivation are then given, although it was already stated that it was due to unusual login attempts.

To remove the block, you need to click on an attached link and follow all instructions. According to the scammers, your account will remain deactivated until you have completed the process. If you ignore the email, your account will supposedly be frozen. Of course, this is not true.

If you click on the link, your account will not be unlocked but will be taken over by fraudsters. The button labeled “Update your payment” leads to a fake Amazon page, as the consumer center reports. If you enter your login details there, the criminals can easily access your account. Your payment details can also be stolen.

If you pay attention to details in the email, you can quickly prevent such an attack. The sender address, the unprofessional greeting and the threat are clear signs of a phishing attempt. You should simply move the message to the spam folder. There it can no longer cause any damage.

Simple signs: How to recognize every phishing email

A first indication that you have received a phishing email: You will be asked to confirm personal data or enter it on a website. This You should not comply with this demand under any circumstancesIn addition, criminals often use the official logos of the companies they are copying in their emails, but not official sender addresses.

If the sender seems suspicious to you, you should read the email twice. This will often help you find spelling mistakes or inconsistencies in German grammar. The attackers usually don’t write their emails themselves, but instead use automatically generated messages or translate known emails using a translation program. But why all the effort?

What do criminals achieve with phishing attacks?

Phishing is used on the Internet to collect real user data. Money can be made from this when email addresses, names and other information are sold for advertising purposes or passed on in criminal forums. With the data obtained, cyber criminals can also target future phishing attacks more precisely and their attacks become more effective.

Attachments and links contained in malicious emails often introduce malware or viruses onto your computer. And don’t ignore suspicious emails. Forward them to the email address above and help us report future phishing attacks.

More fraud warnings on netzwelt – Stay one step ahead of cyber criminals

But phishing emails are not the only danger lurking on the Internet. In addition to attempted fraud, there are all kinds of viruses, Trojans and malware that can infect your computer. Unfortunately, data scandals are also part of everyday digital life. You can see the five most recent articles on the topic of “fraud warnings” below:

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