FBI Warns of New Twists to Old Scams

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) has released an advisory to warn Internet users about new twists to previously existing scams.

For instance, authorities warn that in one instance of a tech support scam, the victim’s computer screen turned blue and then black just before the scammers called. It’s uncertain if it’s related, but this might be a way for the scammers to make their story sound more legitimate.

When it comes to payday loan phone scams in which victims are harassed about alleged debts, crooks have started launching telephony denial-of-service (TDOS) attacks against phone lines.

Furthermore, they’ve started spoofing the phone numbers of police departments when they call up their victims.

Another example provided by the IC3 refers to the 419 scam emails analyzed by Sophos experts, in which recipients were informed that they could receive compensations of over $1 million from the IC3 if they provided their personal details.