Free iPad used as bait in Facebook – advertised phishing scheme
June 2010
IT in Manufacturing
Social networking is so good even for illegitimate marketing campaigns.
How would you like to get one of the much-anticipated iPad gizmos in exchange for simply filling up a mere survey? Well, the offer sounds pretty good – in fact, it sounds too good to be true and that is what it is.
The scheme is massively advertised on a Facebook Events page where about 2500 people signed up for the event and – probably – fell victim to the phishing attack. The idea behind it is extremely simple: you sign up for 'reviewing' an iPad device, get the product and a questionnaire you need to fill in and return to the company. Needless to say that you get to keep the reviewed item without any commitment on your side.
Concealed by a short URL, the target phishing page initially asks for some pretty reasonable info such as the first name and the e-mail address, and culminates with requiring a full set of details, including the full name, home address and phone numbers, as shown below. In order to make the whole deal look legit, the attackers have thrown in logos belonging to high-profile media outlets, although the mentioned institutions have no clue about this initiative.
After all the data has been collected, the attacker asks the user to undergo a last security check and provide their Facebook username and password. Please note that our experiment is carried in a contained environment and we do not encourage you to type in your account credentials on any website except for the genuine one.
To add insult to injury and to maximise the damage, the unwary user whose account has just been phished would be required to download and install an adware application (a browser toolbar) that hijacks the browser’s start page and swaps the default search engine, among others.
Needless to mention that, after filling in the personal details, getting phished and installing the toolbar you will never get the iPad, nor will you hear from the attackers again.
The scheme is based on a common practice amongst product creators, namely sending sample units for reviewing.
However, it is not everybody who can receive a testing unit, as the offer is mostly pointed at opinion influencers, high-profile bloggers and – most of all – specialised review websites. Even that way, journalism ethics urge that the reviewer returns the tested unit to the provider after the process has completed. Now, repeat after me: if something looks too good to be true, than it probably is and you will end up hurting yourself.
Facebook has been notified and the Events page has been taken down.
In order to stay safe, BitDefender recommends you to follow the security tips below:
* Do not enter your personal data and do not download or save files from sources you do not know; use only the producer’s official website.
* Install and activate a reliable security solution .
* Update your antimalware, firewall and spam filter as frequently as possible, with the latest virus definitions and suspicious application/file signatures.
* Scan your system frequently.
For more information contact Aline Anton, senior PR and marketing coordinator, EMEA & APAC Business Unit, BitDefender, [email protected], www.bitdefender.com
Further reading:
Overcoming the bottling industry’s fragmented visibility
Schneider Electric South Africa
IT in Manufacturing Electrical Power & Protection
Beverage bottling facilities are among manufacturing’s most energy-intensive environments, yet many still operate without granular insight into where that energy goes. Rezolia Muller-Potluri of Schneider Electric explains how tiered metering architecture and advanced
Read more...
Advancing intelligent apparel manufacturing with industrial AI and humanoid robotics
IT in Manufacturing
Jack Technology, a global maker of industrial sewing equipment, has chosen Siemens software and engineering tools to bring artificial intelligence and humanoid robots into apparel production, aiming to shorten development cycles and lift manufacturing efficiency.
Read more...
New chiller line for high-density AI data centres
Schneider Electric South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
Schneider Electric has launched the Uniflair XCA, a new series of air-cooled and free-cooling chillers designed for artificial intelligence-driven, high-density liquid-cooled data centres.
Read more...
Turning system integrators into trusted technology partners
Schneider Electric South Africa
IT in Manufacturing System Integration & Control Systems Design
Schneider Electric’s Alliance Partner Programme is repositioning system integrators from hardware suppliers into lifecycle-value partners. Oriel Soupen explains the competency framework, certification model and real-world results that are already helping African system integrators win higher-value, longer-term engagements.
Read more...
Why renewable projects need integrated protection and control
IT in Manufacturing
Fragmented secondary plant integration in renewable energy projects causes costly delays during commissioning. ACTOM Protection and Control’s Secondary Plant Integration solution consolidates all secondary systems under a single engineering framework, reducing risk and accelerating grid
Read more...
When digital twins move from concept to critical tool
IT in Manufacturing System Integration & Control Systems Design Maintenance, Test & Measurement, Calibration
Digital twins are moving out of the lab and onto the mine, the factory floor and the transport network where they predict failures before they happen. Amritesh Anand looks at where they earn their keep, the data and integration work behind them, and the security questions every organisation should ask before switching one on.
Read more...
How a digital foundation can overcome the LNG trilemma
Schneider Electric South Africa
IT in Manufacturing SCADA/HMI
The LNG sector is racing to add capacity, but without a digital backbone, growth creates complexity rather than capability. Christophe Begat of Schneider Electric explains how connecting data, systems and analytics across the LNG value chain can resolve the trilemma of secure supply, lower emissions and tighter costs.
Read more...
Decarbonisation is reshaping mining strategy in Africa
Schneider Electric South Africa
IT in Manufacturing Electrical Power & Protection
Mining companies across Africa are embedding decarbonisation into operational strategy, driven by investor, regulatory and customer pressure to reduce emissions while improving resilience.
Read more...
Siemens and HighByte partner to scale industrial AI
Siemens South Africa
IT in Manufacturing Fieldbus & Industrial Networking
Siemens is expanding its Industrial Edge ecosystem through a partnership with HighByte, enabling customers to connect, contextualise and transform data from operational technology and information technology sources to build AI models and applications at scale.
Read more...
Africa on the edge of a digital future
Schneider Electric South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
Edge computing promises lower latency, stronger reliability and real-time responsiveness across Africa, yet its rollout keeps colliding with one stubborn obstacle, power. Steven Santini explores how renewable microgrids, smart energy management and the right partnerships could turn the continent’s energy gap into its biggest edge opportunity.
Read more...
printer friendly version