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This is being exploited by the scammers.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 515.473 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(There is currently a UPS scam making its rounds in university mailboxes, where victims are lured into clicking a download )] TJ ET BT 61.016 504.484 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(link.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 484.495 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(If you have received a package via the parcel company like UPS or DHL, you might be tempted open up an e-mail that )] TJ ET BT 61.016 473.506 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(seems to come from them, saying they have a package for you. There might be an attachment that you are asked to open )] TJ ET BT 61.016 462.517 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(to confirm your address or to fill in your personal details for "verification".)] TJ ET BT 61.016 442.528 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(The whole thing is a scam. Clicking on the attachment will download a Trojan virus onto your computer which will just sit )] TJ ET BT 61.016 431.539 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(there doing its nefarious work — reading your files, including confidential information, then transmitting the details to a )] TJ ET BT 61.016 420.550 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(server somewhere that is controlled by the criminals.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 400.561 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(It seems there are two main variations of this "parcel delivery" scam - both looking like a genuine notification.)] TJ ET 0.400 0.400 0.400 RG 85.866 383.388 m 85.866 383.800 85.696 384.210 85.404 384.502 c 85.113 384.793 84.703 384.963 84.291 384.963 c 83.878 384.963 83.469 384.793 83.177 384.502 c 82.885 384.210 82.716 383.800 82.716 383.388 c 82.716 382.976 82.885 382.566 83.177 382.274 c 83.469 381.983 83.878 381.813 84.291 381.813 c 84.703 381.813 85.113 381.983 85.404 382.274 c 85.696 382.566 85.866 382.976 85.866 383.388 c f BT 91.016 380.572 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(The first one tells you the parcel service tried, but was unable to deliver a package to you because of an incorrect )] TJ ET BT 91.016 369.583 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(address. The subject heading usually has a phony tracking number. The attachment is supposedly a copy of a )] TJ ET BT 91.016 358.594 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(waybill or invoice for you to print and use to collect the parcel from a UPS office.)] TJ ET 85.866 341.421 m 85.866 341.833 85.696 342.243 85.404 342.535 c 85.113 342.826 84.703 342.996 84.291 342.996 c 83.878 342.996 83.469 342.826 83.177 342.535 c 82.885 342.243 82.716 341.833 82.716 341.421 c 82.716 341.009 82.885 340.599 83.177 340.307 c 83.469 340.016 83.878 339.846 84.291 339.846 c 84.703 339.846 85.113 340.016 85.404 340.307 c 85.696 340.599 85.866 341.009 85.866 341.421 c f BT 91.016 338.605 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(The second is a customs notification and may even seem to come from “US Customs Service” rather than UPS. It )] TJ ET BT 91.016 327.616 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(says you have an international package \(usually from Europe\) and that you need to complete the attached )] TJ ET BT 91.016 316.627 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(customs form so it can be delivered.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 296.638 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(In both these cases, the attachment is a compressed ZIP file \(that is, one with a name that ends in “.zip”\), even though the )] TJ ET BT 61.016 285.649 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(icon may look like a Word document. As soon as you double click on it, it will install a program onto your computer will )] TJ ET BT 61.016 274.660 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(then download and install several files on your system. These may disable your firewall, look for and steal credit card and )] TJ ET BT 61.016 263.671 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(bank account details, make screen snapshots and allow hackers full access to your machine.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 243.682 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(This attack underlines the danger of opening an attached file in an email, even if it appears to come from a person or )] TJ ET BT 61.016 232.693 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(organization you know or frequently deal with.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 212.704 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Here is an example of one such mail.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 192.715 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [( )] TJ ET 0.592 0.592 0.592 rg 0.592 0.592 0.592 RG 305.016 183.017 m 306.516 183.017 l 305.766 182.267 l 305.766 182.267 l f 1.000 1.000 1.000 rg 1.000 1.000 1.000 RG 305.016 180.767 m 306.516 180.767 l 305.766 181.517 l 305.766 181.517 l f 306.516 183.017 m 306.516 180.767 l 305.766 181.517 l 305.766 182.267 l f 0.592 0.592 0.592 rg 0.592 0.592 0.592 RG 305.016 183.017 m 305.016 180.767 l 305.766 181.517 l 305.766 182.267 l f 0.400 0.400 0.400 rg BT 61.016 162.976 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [( )] TJ ET BT 61.016 142.987 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(From: Usps Parcel [)] TJ ET 0.373 0.169 0.255 rg BT 140.531 142.987 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(mailto:shipment@uspc.com)] TJ ET 0.373 0.169 0.255 RG 0.18 w 0 J [ ] 0 d 140.531 141.836 m 251.195 141.836 l S 0.400 0.400 0.400 rg BT 251.195 142.987 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(])] TJ ET BT 61.016 122.998 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Sent: 28 November 2016 07:29 AM)] TJ ET BT 61.016 103.009 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(To: Recipients <)] TJ ET 0.373 0.169 0.255 rg BT 126.293 103.009 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(shipment@uspc.com)] TJ ET 0.18 w 0 J [ ] 0 d 126.293 101.858 m 210.452 101.858 l S 0.400 0.400 0.400 rg BT 210.452 103.009 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(>)] TJ ET endstream endobj 8 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F1 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 9 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F2 /BaseFont /Helvetica /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 10 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F3 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Oblique /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 11 0 obj << /Type /Annot /Subtype /Link /A 12 0 R /Border [0 0 0] /H /I /Rect [ 140.5307 142.1542 251.1947 151.3117 ] >> endobj 12 0 obj << /Type /Action /S /URI /URI (mailto:shipment@uspc.com) >> endobj 13 0 obj << /Type /Annot /Subtype /Link /A 14 0 R /Border [0 0 0] /H /I /Rect [ 126.2927 102.1762 210.4517 111.3337 ] >> endobj 14 0 obj << /Type /Action /S /URI /URI (mailto:shipment@uspc.com) >> endobj 15 0 obj << /Type /Page /Parent 3 0 R /Contents 16 0 R >> endobj 16 0 obj << /Length 2775 >> stream 0.400 0.400 0.400 rg 0.373 0.169 0.255 RG 0.18 w 0 J [ ] 0 d 0.702 0.800 0.816 rg 34.016 34.016 543.969 723.969 re f 1.000 1.000 1.000 rg 45.266 390.193 521.469 367.791 re f 0.773 0.773 0.773 rg 0.773 0.773 0.773 RG 45.266 390.193 m 566.734 390.193 l 565.984 390.943 l 46.016 390.943 l f 566.734 757.984 m 566.734 390.193 l 565.984 390.943 l 565.984 757.984 l f 45.266 757.984 m 45.266 390.193 l 46.016 390.943 l 46.016 757.984 l f 0.400 0.400 0.400 rg BT 61.016 740.193 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Subject: Parcel Receipt)] TJ ET BT 61.016 720.204 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [( )] TJ ET BT 61.016 700.215 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(USPS Shipment Notification)] TJ ET BT 61.016 680.226 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(A parcel was sent to our office for you and we have tried to deliver it several times to your address on file.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 660.237 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Attached is the receipt via Dropbox, used in sending you the parcel. We advise you DOWNLOAD the document and )] TJ ET BT 61.016 649.248 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(reconfirm the address on receipt if its your valid address.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 629.259 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(For further assistance, please call USPS Customer Service.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 609.270 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(For International Customer Service, please use official USPS site.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 589.281 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [( )] TJ ET BT 61.016 569.292 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Copyright © 2016 USPS. All Rights Reserved.)] TJ ET BT 61.016 549.303 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(--)] TJ ET BT 61.016 529.314 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by Fair Distribution MailScanner, and is believed to )] TJ ET BT 61.016 518.325 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(be clean. )] TJ ET BT 61.016 498.336 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [( )] TJ ET 0.592 0.592 0.592 rg 0.592 0.592 0.592 RG 305.016 488.638 m 306.516 488.638 l 305.766 487.888 l 305.766 487.888 l f 1.000 1.000 1.000 rg 1.000 1.000 1.000 RG 305.016 486.388 m 306.516 486.388 l 305.766 487.138 l 305.766 487.138 l f 306.516 488.638 m 306.516 486.388 l 305.766 487.138 l 305.766 487.888 l f 0.592 0.592 0.592 rg 0.592 0.592 0.592 RG 305.016 488.638 m 305.016 486.388 l 305.766 487.138 l 305.766 487.888 l f 0.400 0.400 0.400 rg BT 61.016 468.597 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(So do not succumb to the temptation of opening up attachments in emails, especially if it comes from couriers and parcel )] TJ ET BT 61.016 457.608 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(delivery companies like UPS or DHL. It is the end of the year. Our energy and concentration is ebbing and we are all more )] TJ ET BT 61.016 446.619 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(vulnerable, making us all potential targets of the cyber-criminal.)] TJ ET BT 432.949 426.630 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [([ARTICLE BY DAVID WILES])] TJ ET BT 61.016 408.141 Td /F3 9.0 Tf [(Posted in:E-mail,Security | Tagged:Phishing,Security,Spam | With 0 comments)] TJ ET endstream endobj xref 0 17 0000000000 65535 f 0000000008 00000 n 0000000073 00000 n 0000000119 00000 n 0000000301 00000 n 0000000330 00000 n 0000000465 00000 n 0000000554 00000 n 0000006762 00000 n 0000006874 00000 n 0000006981 00000 n 0000007097 00000 n 0000007225 00000 n 0000007301 00000 n 0000007429 00000 n 0000007505 00000 n 0000007570 00000 n trailer << /Size 17 /Root 1 0 R /Info 5 0 R >> startxref 10398 %%EOF security « Informasietegnologie
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Scam warning: UPS Parcel Receipt with infected attachment

Wednesday, November 30th, 2016

The holiday season is upon us and there is a lot of activity around this time of the year with parcels being delivered both at home and at the university. This is being exploited by the scammers.

There is currently a UPS scam making its rounds in university mailboxes, where victims are lured into clicking a download link.

If you have received a package via the parcel company like UPS or DHL, you might be tempted open up an e-mail that seems to come from them, saying they have a package for you. There might be an attachment that you are asked to open to confirm your address or to fill in your personal details for “verification”.

The whole thing is a scam. Clicking on the attachment will download a Trojan virus onto your computer which will just sit there doing its nefarious work — reading your files, including confidential information, then transmitting the details to a server somewhere that is controlled by the criminals.

It seems there are two main variations of this “parcel delivery” scam – both looking like a genuine notification.

  • The first one tells you the parcel service tried, but was unable to deliver a package to you because of an incorrect address. The subject heading usually has a phony tracking number. The attachment is supposedly a copy of a waybill or invoice for you to print and use to collect the parcel from a UPS office.
  • The second is a customs notification and may even seem to come from “US Customs Service” rather than UPS. It says you have an international package (usually from Europe) and that you need to complete the attached customs form so it can be delivered.

In both these cases, the attachment is a compressed ZIP file (that is, one with a name that ends in “.zip”), even though the icon may look like a Word document. As soon as you double click on it, it will install a program onto your computer will then download and install several files on your system. These may disable your firewall, look for and steal credit card and bank account details, make screen snapshots and allow hackers full access to your machine.

This attack underlines the danger of opening an attached file in an email, even if it appears to come from a person or organization you know or frequently deal with.

Here is an example of one such mail.

 

 

From: Usps Parcel [mailto:shipment@uspc.com]

Sent: 28 November 2016 07:29 AM

To: Recipients <shipment@uspc.com>

Subject: Parcel Receipt

 

USPS Shipment Notification

A parcel was sent to our office for you and we have tried to deliver it several times to your address on file.

Attached is the receipt via Dropbox, used in sending you the parcel. We advise you DOWNLOAD the document and reconfirm the address on receipt if its your valid address.

For further assistance, please call USPS Customer Service.

For International Customer Service, please use official USPS site.

 

Copyright © 2016 USPS. All Rights Reserved.

—

This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by Fair Distribution MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. 

 

So do not succumb to the temptation of opening up attachments in emails, especially if it comes from couriers and parcel delivery companies like UPS or DHL. It is the end of the year. Our energy and concentration is ebbing and we are all more vulnerable, making us all potential targets of the cyber-criminal.

[ARTICLE BY DAVID WILES]

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Whatsapp scams

Wednesday, November 23rd, 2016

WhatsApp is a popular communication tool, used by students and personnel every day. On the downside, it provides cyber criminals with another way to convince you to part with your well-earned money and unfortunately it’s usually quite convincing.

WhatsApp scams come in many different forms and are often very convincing. Just make sure that you stay vigilant and don’t fall for anything that seems too good or too worrying to be true. Just because a friend or a family member sends you something, it doesn’t mean that it is safe.

Voucher scams

A message arrives in your WhatsApp from someone who looks like your friend, recommending a deal they’ve found. The messages usually come with a link that actually takes you to another website and tricks you into giving your personal information. Don’t ever click a link you’re not sure of and certainly don’t ever hand over personal information to a website you haven’t checked.

WhatsApp shutting down

There are many fake messages claiming that WhatsApp is going to end unless enough people share a certain message. The messages often look convincing, claiming to come from the CEO or another official. They’re written using the right words and phrases and look like an official statement. Any official statement wouldn’t need users to send it to everyone like a round robin. You would either see it in the news or it’ll come up as a proper notification in the app from the actual WhatsApp team.

WhatsApp threatening to shut down your account

This is very similar to the previous scam. It looks like an official message that claims that people’s WhatsApp accounts are being shut down for being inactive. Sending the message on will prove that it’s actually being used and often instructs people to pass it along.

WhatsApp forcing you to pay

Similar to the previous scam, with the only difference being that the message supposedly exempts you from having to pay for your account – if you send it on to other people.

WhatsApp Gold or WhatsApp Premium

The claim suggests that people pay for or download a special version of WhatsApp, usually called Gold or Premium. It offers a range of exciting-sounding features, like the ability to send more pictures, use new emoji or add extra security features. The problem is that it is far from secure. Downloading the app infects people’s phones with malware that use the phone to send more fake messages at the cost of the original victim.

Emails from WhatsApp

Spam e-mails are bad enough. E-mails plus WhatsApp is even worse. There’s a range of scams out there that send people e-mails that look like they’ve come from WhatsApp, usually looking like a notification for a missed voice call or voicemail. But when you click through, you will end up getting tricked into giving over your information, passphrases etc. Don’t ever click on an e-mail from a questionable sender. WhatsApp doesn’t send you e-mails including information about missed calls or voicemails.

Fake WhatsApp spying apps

Currently, it is not possible to let people spy on other’s conversations on WhatsApp, because it has end-to-end encryption enabled, which ensures that messages can only be read by the phones that send and receive them. These scam apps encourage people to download something that isn’t actually real and force people to pay money for malware, or actually read your chats once they’ve got onto your phone.

Lastly – 

Hopefully, you have  already blocked sharing your WhatsApp details with Facebook (telephone number, name etc. and allowing Facebook to suggest phone contacts as friends) and Facebook will not be able to  make your WhatsApp account accessible to the 13 million South African Facebook users.

There are some details about this controversial policy change by WhatsApp on the following page: http://www.mirror.co.uk/tech/you-can-stop-whatsapp-sharing-8893949

 

[ARTICLE BY DAVID WILES]

 

 

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Lose your cellphone, lose your info

Friday, October 24th, 2014

If you lost your cellphone today, what would a criminal have access to? Your smses? Your banking details? Your private documents saved in your e-mail? Or sensitive work documents even?

And yet, we carry this invaluable information with us every day. We absentmindedly wander around talking in public while we’re within reaching distance of any opportunistic criminal. But there are also other ways to access information on your phone by means of spyware and other suspicious software.

We use our cellphones more and more to organise and plan our lives and at the same time, make ourselves more vulnerable.

However, there are a few measures you can take to ensure you don’t become a victim.

1. PASSWORD OR PIN

This is your most important first line of defense. Without a PIN or password, anyone can get hold of your cellphone, access your e-mail, bank details, sms and personal information.

smartphone-icon-1340911-mAnd Microsoft’s head of online security agrees.”Using a PIN or unique password is the single most important thing to do as a user of a smartphone to protect the device, the data and your reputation.” According to Beauchere the data on your phone is also more recent than the data on your desktop or laptop. This increases the risk even more.

Last year Microsoft conducted a worldwide online survey regarding the usage of PINs. 10 000 desktop and mobile device users from 20 countries took part. Only 28% of these used a PIN on a device.

2.CELLPHONE APPS

Be very careful which apps you download and where you download them from. It’s great having an app to streamline your life or one to entertain you, but weigh the pros and cons against each other.

Even if an app looks nifty, rather download a similar one from renowned app shops like iTunes, Google Play and Amazon. So some research. Read other readers’ comments, how they rate the app and if they experienced any problems with it.

3. DUBIOUS LINKS

According to research people are 3 times more likely to click on a link on their phone than one on their PCs. The fact that the screen is smaller and dubious links not as easily recognised could be the reason. Be suspicious of request for personal information you receive via links in sms, e-mail or social networks. By clicking on them, you run the risk of identity theft.

4. UNPROTECTED WI-FI

When you use an open WI-FI network in coffee shops, malls and other public places you information isn’t securely sent through the air. Any other person can intercept it during transmission. If you have to do banking on your phone or work with sensitive information, rather wait till your at work or home and have access to a secure WI-FI network.

5. SPYWARE

Without a password cyber criminals can load spyware on your phone and track your sms records, e-mails, banking transactions and location. To prevent this from happening, activate a password or PIN on your phone or download an app from a reputable store to scan for and remove spyware and viruses.

If you’d like to read more on cellphone security, wikipedia has extensive information.

[SOURCES: www.rd.com, www.computerworld.com]

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Hackers and crackers

Friday, October 18th, 2013

We all remember Lisbeth Salander from the The Girl with the Dragon tattoo movie or Neo in The Matrix – both hackers.

Earlier this week even SU websites were targeted by the 747crew, who used it to proclaim their political and religious convictions. 

But apparently there’s a difference between hackers and crackers. In the context of computer security a hacker is seen as someone who pinpoints the weaknesses in a computer system or network and exploits them. His motivation can be financial gain, a platform for protest or purely because it’s a challenge.

Over time, and partly thanks to the media, the association with the word “hacker” predominantly became a negative one. Eric S. Raymond (author of The New Hacker’s Dictionary) believes that members of the computer underground should be called crackers.  According to R.D. Clifford (2006) a cracker is someone who illegally gained access to a computer with the intent of committing a crime, for example destroying data on a particular system.

 More recently the word hacker has been reclaimed by computer programmers who agree with Raymond that those who hack with criminal intent, should be called a cracker. Several subgroups of this subculture have different approaches and also use different terms to distinguish themselves from others.

A white hat won’t break into a system with malicious intent, but rather to test their own security or for a company manufacturing security software. The term white hat in internet slang refers to an ethical hacker.

A black hat hacker violates computer security for his own benefit. These are the stereotypical characters we see depicted in popular culture, like movies. Black hats break into secure networks to destroy data or to render the network unusable for those who need to access it.

A grey hat surfs the internet and breaks into a system only to notify it’s administrator that it has a security defect and then offer to fix it at a price.

A blue hat assists with the testing of a system before it’s launched to establish it’s weaknesses. Usually he’s not part of a computer security company.

Other terms include a script kiddie (someone who’s not an expert and uses other people’s software to hack) and a neophyte, “n00b”, or “newbie” is a novice who’s still in training.  

A Hacktivist is a hacker who misuses technology to convey his social, ideological and political message. The defacement of the SU webpages earlier this week is an example of hactivism.

[SOURCE: www.wikipedia.org]

 

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Beware of SIM card swap fraud

Friday, February 22nd, 2013

 

Although it is a known scam, when it hits one of your colleagues, it makes you aware that there are very real dangers out there. A SIM card swap fraud occurs when criminals obtain and utilise a replacement SIM card to acquire security messages and one-time passwords (OTP) sent to you by the bank. Using the OTP, criminals are able to change, add beneficiaries and transfer money out of your account using your personal information that they would have obtained through phishing. One of our colleagues lost R20 000 over the holidays and asked us to warn other staff as well:

How does a SIM swap scam work?

  • The SIM swap takes place after the fraudsters have received a your bank logon details as a result of the you responding to, for example, a Phishing e-mail. (this is why phishing e-mails are so dangerous and you should never ever respond or click on links contained in these phishing e-mails.)
  • Once the fraudsters have the your cell phone number and other personal information, the fraudster can pose as you, requesting a new SIM card from a cellular service provider.
  • The cellular service provider transfers the your SIM card identity to the new SIM card, cancelling your old SIM card in the process.
  • The result is that there is no signal on the old SIM card, which means the you cannot receive / make phone calls or send SMS messages. (This ought to be the first sign of something wrong, so if you get  “SIMCARD INVALID” error on your cell phone)
  • The SMS authorisation reference number, which is normally sent to the client, reaches the fraudster instead of you, the legitimate owner, and the fraudster is able to make once-off payments and create beneficiaries fraudulently

What should I do if I suspect an unlawful SIM swap?

  • If you fall prey to an unlawful SIM swap, or suspect that you have, contact your cellular service provider for assistance.
  • Also contact the internet banking helpdesk to request that your internet banking access be suspended with immediate effect. This will prevent fraudsters from gaining access and transacting on your accounts.

What can I do to prevent SIM swap fraud?

  • Protect your information – all your information.
  • Do not disclose your ID number on websites unless you have verified the legitimacy of the site. The bank already knows your ID number and will not require you to give it to us again.
  • Do not disclose your cell number on websites unless you have verified the legitimacy of the site. Phishing sites often request for information such as ID Number, email address and email address password, physical address, etc.
  • Always make sure that your contact details on Internet banking are valid and correct. You know when your details have changed, so when you are ready, you can update the information on Internet banking or at a local bank branch.

[INFORMATION SUPPLIED BY DAVID WILES]

 

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