Online scams are getting more and more sophisticated – and to avoid falling into their traps, you’ll need to know what their tricks are.

Deepfakes

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is one of the sharpest new weapons in the fraudster’s arsenal. An often-encountered abuse of AI relates to “deepfakes” (derived from deep learning and fake media), where AI is used to create or manipulate audio and/or visual content to appear authentic, deceiving or convincing family, friends, and colleagues that they are communicating with a real person.  

Watch out for seemingly believable audio and visual clips that are made to look like they’re from trusted individuals, which trick victims into sending money or sharing their confidential information. One of the most common online scams doing the rounds in early 2024 features Elon Musk. 

QR Code Quishing 

Remember how QR codes exploded during the pandemic? Contactless payments are now completely normal… and so are QR code scams. (A study by cybersecurity firm Check Point found a 587% increase in this kind of attack between August and September 2023 alone.) QR phishing – or “quishing”, which is somehow a word – uses an official-looking QR code that leads you to a fake website. Some scammers are so brazen that they’ll slap fake QR code stickers onto real advertisements in public spaces.  

Ransomware 

Also known as good, old-fashioned blackmail. Ransomware is a type of malicious software (malware) distributed via email, advertisements, or botnets, that encrypts data and information on victims’ devices (computers, laptops, mobiles), systems, or networks. This is done to extort money from victims by restricting access and making files inaccessible to everyone, including the owner, until a ransom is paid.

Fake Online Stores  

There's a vast network of fake websites intended to defraud people of their money or steal their personal information. These websites are set up to mimic legitimate company websites, luring customers with extravagant discounts or other great deals on well-known brands.

Often, these are difficult to spot because they’re designed to imitate the look and feel of legitimate retailers. In other instances, they even create fake companies and their own “brands” to trick and deceive victims. So if you ordered something from an online store and haven't received it after a reasonable period, and can't reach the sellers, you've probably been scammed!  

Chatbots

While chatbots are widely used to assist customers with online queries or issues, tech-savvy fraudsters can exploit these to trick victims into thinking that they are engaging with a real person. Once trust is gained, the chatbot will ask for personal or sensitive information, making it look like a required step to provide personalized support.

Online scammers are coming up with more and more fresh ways to commit fraud. One of your best weapons is to educate yourself and be on guard. To assist with this, visit our online fraud overview for a wide array of informative content about online safety and different methods of fraud.