online fraud news stories on Newser

Teens Behind 'Crimebook' Web Forum Sentenced

Rob Quinn — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 02:30:00 CST

A career in cybercrime that began with hacking into boarding school records to erase friends' detention records ended yesterday with a 19-year-old ringleader sentenced to up to 5 years in jail. Nick Webber and two teenage accomplices were convicted of setting up a "Facebook for crooks" on which criminals around...

Cybercriminals Create 57K Fake Websites a Week

John Johnson — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 15:53:15 CDT

Here's a happy stat: Hackers create at least 57,000 fake websites a week, reports SecurityWeek . Most are set up to be clones of banks or other commerce sites, with eBay and Western Union by far the most common. Others in the top 10 include Visa, HSBC, Bank of America,...

Identify Theft Cases Spike, but Hackers Aren't to Blame

Jane Yager — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 10:37:41 CDT

Last year the number of identity theft victims in the US jumped 12%, while the number of Internet-related fraud cases went up 23%. But the problem isn't just hackers, say experts: In many cases, we're exposing our private data to anyone and everyone who knows where to look. Atlanta officials...

Scammers Target 'Google Doodles'

Rob Quinn — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 07:09:56 CST

The graphics Google adds to its logo on special occasions have become the latest target for search engine scam artists adept at manipulating results. Yesterday's Esperanto Day sketch took users to a list of search results for creator L.L. Zamenhof and 27 of the first 50 contained malware, including...

Swindlers Are Trying to Tweet You

Rob Quinn — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 08:31:31 CDT

The world's lowlifes are taking full advantage of Twitter's high profile, the Los Angeles Times reports. The Better Business Bureau warns that there has been a surge in scamsters luring people into phony work-from-home schemes. They urge users to be extremely wary of any "cash-for-tweets" scheme offering easy income.

Scammers Target Panicky Job Hunters

Rob Quinn — Tue, 26 May 2009 02:10:21 CDT

Scammers are taking advantage of the recession to con people desperately seeking work out of what little cash they have left, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Watchdog groups warn that phony work-from-home offers promising quick cash in return for an initial outlay of money are proliferating, and that some fraudsters are...

Top Traits That Mean You're a Sucker

Rob Quinn — Tue, 19 May 2009 13:31:56 CDT

British researchers have identified several traits that make a person more likely to be sucked in by a scam, the Daily Telegraph reports. The country's fraud watchdog warns that while nobody is immune to being conned, the following traits make around a fifth of the population most vulnerable: An inability...

Hackers Cook Time 's Most- Influential Poll; Mag Shrugs

Harry Kimball — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 13:53:38 CDT

The results of Time ’s online “world’s most influential person” poll have fallen victim to shenanigans, TechCrunch reports. Moot, leader of the devious web forum 4Chan, sits atop Time ’s leaderboard, above Barack Obama and other usual suspects. And the first letters of the top 20 spell out “Marblecake Also...

Oprah's Not Giving You $1M, FBI Warns Marks

Rob Quinn — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 02:05:18 CDT

The FBI has warned that Oprah Winfrey isn't really giving anybody $1 million, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. Scamsters have been sending people emails about a supposed "Oprah Winfrey Millionaire Contest Show." Recipients are told they have been nominated to attend a special show where the host will hand out millions—...