Hello Fellow SETA Employees and Associates,
We need to be constantly on guard to protect ourselves and our network from ‘the bad guys’. Here is some excellent advice that came in one of the security newsletters I subscribe to. I felt it was well worth passing on to all of you. Please pay particular attention to point number 3 – Go to a retailer’s website to get a link to their app if you want it. Do not trust any other source.
Thank-you for your vigilance and remember to:
Practice Safe Computing!
Your Friendly IT Department
Watch Out for Fake Apps!
The holidays are here and the scammers are out in full force. Their latest trick is fake apps. Starbucks started the first “retail app”, and many stores have followed.
But scammers are now creating fake apps, trick you into downloading them to your smartphone or tablet, and ask you to load your credit card information in these apps. You can guess what happens next.
Here are 6 things to think about
- Be very judicious in deciding what app to download. Better safe than sorry.
- If you *do* decide to download an app, first thing to check is the reviews, apps with few reviews or bad reviews are a big red flag.
- Never click on a link in any email to download a new app. Only go to the website of the retailer to get a link to the legit app on the AppStore or Google Play.
- Give as little information as possible if you decide to use an app. Remember, it is O.K. to be less than truthful about your personal information. You DO NOT have to give your exact date of birth or your mother’s real maiden name to a non-official i.e. retail website.
- Be very, very reluctant to link your credit card to any app!
- Never, ever use the same username and password that you use to access your banking website or other highly personal websites including email.
There is more information about this at the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/07/technology/more-iphone-fake-retail-apps-before-holidays.html
