Fraud on the internet

The Internet has a great advantage for fraudsters: You can reach with relatively little effort, millions of potential victims. The necessary E-mail addresses are now available from dozens of companies, in the dark areas of the Internet, there are however free of charge. Also the expertise to prepare sites so that they play visitors a malicious program on the computer, is now widely used and is passed on in obscure forums. Make lots can not be against it.

It that the dangers you are aware and exercise caution in your activities on the Internet is more important. In particular, the following rules are observed:

Be extremely cautious with the publication of your account and credit card data. Give them only when absolutely trusted vendors. Once you suspect that something is wrong, cancel the data entry and close the website.
Are you suspicious when entering your personal data is required for a supposedly free quote.
Are you suspicious of emails that offer you links to your bank or to a credit card company. Reputable institutions do not send such mails.
Do not open attachments in emails from senders you do not know.
Use an antivirus program and play the patches for Windows and your browser immediately.
On the following pages, we describe the ten most popular mesh, as is currently trying to pull the money out of people.

1. The classic: phishing emails

Currently circulating several mails in which the payment service PayPal asks its customers to confirm their account information, or perform a new registration. Given to click a link in the email and fill out a form with your account information. These mails are fake one and all. It's the cheaters just about to get to your account information, the method is known as phishing. Just like banks and credit card companies also PayPal will never try to clarify in this way questions about your account.

Mostly it comes to the senders of such messages but not to your account information, but simply you foist a Trojan virus on the specified website. Such viruses often exploit vulnerabilities in the browser or add-ons, such as Adobe Flash to unnoticed to place software on your computer. The programs begin for example credit card information from or turn your PC into a remote-controlled bot computers. With botnets, to which thousands of computers include, attacks are driven against sites with the aim to paralyze the server and make the site at least temporarily inaccessible.

Phishing emails are now sorted by most spam filters. Make anyway sure that you always consult your bank's website only to manually enter the address in the browser or on your personal favorite list.

1. The email from attorney

To deliver viruses to other computers, fraudsters send emails like, where they send a reminder had unpaid bills. They pretend to be law firm or collection agency. Mostly it comes to three-figure sums that are supposedly still open, closer is reportedly in a document in an attached zip file. Many recipients get a fright then she forgot all precautions, open the ZIP file and click on the document contained therein. And the trap snaps shut: because it is actually not a document but a camouflaged program file that now sets a virus into the system.

Instead of bills to the mails partially include order confirmations or confirmations of the application from an online service. Always revolve around the need to induce the recipient to take a file attachment to appearances. But regardless of where the message came, it is always the same old principle: Do not open the attachment in an email, when you do not know the sender.

1. storefronts Annual

work some web shops that turn even ads on search engines and on Facebook for attracting visitors with a particularly nasty method. When entering specific keywords such as "apple low" or "iPhone cheaper" for a while advertisements were displayed during Microsoft's Bing, promised the Apple devices at greatly reduced prices. Clicked to one of the links, so one was led to a site that promises access to a registry on a database over which one should find distributors for closeouts and bankruptcy goods.

The service is aimed supposedly only to commercial users, but this is not verified. When a visitor now enters his data in the form and click "Register now" clicks, he is asked to 298,80 Euro per year to pay, the duration of the contract is two years. A note found in a small box on the page, but obviously overlooked by many Anendern. Incidentally, there is no guarantee that the requested hardware is actually in one of the dealers offer. If the customer tries then get out again by pointing to his right of withdrawal from the contract, it is claimed that this law does not apply to traders.

Under the address www.watchlist-internet.at/abo-fallen/bekannte-abzocke-websites-auf-einen-blick the Austrian Internet Ombudsman leads to a list of known sites of this kind. They are almost all located in Germany. Note: The links in the ads are usually only the concealment of the actual address and guide the prospective only further to the aforementioned stores.

1. Webshop does not deliver

A classic fraud are webshops who demand payment in advance and then not deliver the ordered goods. Since such behavior naturally attracts criminal charges according to such sites are mostly vanished pretty quickly. But before that is still strong Checkout done, then those responsible are untraceable.

Here helps only Caution: Never allow yourself on a to transfer the money for a commodity in advance. Are you wary of stores that offer exclusively this payment method. It is best to pay by invoice after receipt of goods, relatively safe is payment by credit card or through PayPal because you can reclaim your money in case of dispute. Note, however, that you have to meet deadlines: For credit card payment, you must normally report within four weeks at the institution that issued the card, with PayPal, the deadline is 45 days.

1. rip with ESTA applications

For several years, the United States require an electronic application to enter as part of the electronic system for travel authorization (ESTA). Under the address https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta there for an official form, plus a handling fee of $ 14 must be paid, representing currently approximately 10.70 euros. Some sites make the ignorance of many USA traveled advantage and offer to take over the application for them. However, this is associated with high costs, partially rates of 70 to 80 dollars are required. Substance is that with services such as a reachable round the clock hotline or the review of the information by an expert. While getting the customers usually have their applications, the price is, however, completely coated. It is pure money making, completing the official form leads exactly to the target. Incidentally, there is no guarantee that the ESTA application is also approved.

1. Directory fraudsters

A widespread form of fraud lures with Directory Entries on the Internet. Small offices and companies get a letter or an e-mail and will be asked to verify the information on their industry and their address and to confirm with an answer. In some variants, the letter also attract so that they absorb the addressee new in a business directory. Although the address appeared then actually in an Internet directory on, however, the entries in the incomplete databases have little value. Only in small print or in poorly legible on recycled paper is also that the entry is not free. Depending on the provider bills 600-1400 Euro will be presented in the year. The contract period is set at two years and is automatically renewed.

The Directory-trick as many addressees view only superficially the letter in busy office, sign and send back. Sufferers should pay no case immediately and get help instead.

1. free offers at Facebook

Especially in Facebook, but also in many banner ads, free gifts are touted. If you follow the links, you can get a supposedly free iPhone or iPad, vouchers or Facebook credits or participate in a Facebook lottery. The goal is always to entice the user to an external website, where he then fill out a form, or to click on another banner. Linked to this is then often the completion of a paid subscription, often it is also just about to get to the personal data of the person, because that can be sell well. Particular caution is required when the phone number is requested. Because in this way can the company the subscription charges easily via the mobile phone bill move, specifying an account number is then no longer necessary.

Be vigilant when you are supposed to enter your personal information in an online form. Enter your account number and the phone number continue only in exceptional cases. Make sure you confirm by clicking on the button at the bottom of the form all - here often lurks Abovertrag. Explore also the imprint of the site and googled the there registered providers, in this way, black sheep can usually identify good. Those have fallen into a subscription trap, refer to pages of the Centre for European consumer protection e. V. (www.ecommerce-verbindungsstelle.de) Leaflets and other information.

1. scareware

A relatively old trick, but he obviously still works: in advertising banners on websites or when installing freeware programs appeared on the sudden warning that a virus was detected on the user's computer. But help is near: Just a click away, and you will be directed to a page on which there is an antivirus program to download, for a fee of course. Partly also online disinfection is promised even for this the user has to pay. In some cases, also with alleged hacker attacks or faded advertisements, claiming to be from the federal police or other law enforcement agencies, attempts the owner of the computer to create fear (hence the term "scareware") and him to purchase defensive measures or to move transfer of a fine.

You can ignore those and Banner Advertisement confidently. Because the alleged danger is not that offered antivirus tools are mostly fake. In fact, it is in most cases only about ripping off money occasionally serves the deception also attempting to place a Trojan virus on your PC.

1. The intelligence test

Intelligence or IQ tests on the Internet are almost as popular as Googling yourself. It has therefore developed a wide range of free tests that apparently reckon economically ads. Most of these tests, for example of the "Sueddeutsche Zeitung" or the "world", are reputable, which though not the validity of the results to be evaluated. But there are also shady deals. They prompt the user to answer the test questions, please give name and address and send the electronic test sheets with the click of a button on the operator of the website, so you can send a detailed evaluation in return. Thus the trap snaps, because with the click of the button, the user agrees to the terms of a paid services or subscriptions to. Again: In the disclosure of personal information on the internet caution is advised.

1. Contests

Every day, put new competitions on the Internet, many of which attract with extremely attractive prices: You can win cars, travel, television, smartphones or even large sums of money. The vast majority of these games comes from trusted vendors and serves the same purpose as a crossword puzzle in a magazine: The idea is to collect addresses to which then newsletters and other advertising will be sent or to be sold to the advertising industry. The profits financed thus virtually by themselves if they are not sponsored in any case. In some cases teachers are then showered with spam, which can be shut off only with difficulty. And here again the lurking subscription traps: Some companies exploit the fact that the participants abandon all caution and overlooking a nice profit, and specify their addresses. Upon confirmation of the participation conditions of the reference of a paid subscription is then connected.

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