Internet scams are different methodologies of Fraud initiated by cybercriminals on the Internet. Scams can happen in several ways like phishing emails, social media, SMS messages on your mobile phone, fake tech support phone calls, scareware and more. The main purpose of these types of scams can range from credit card theft, capturing user login and password credentials and even identity theft.
Security and privacy is one of the main concerns while we are trying to access the internet. This is the scenario in the modern world today where technology has increased new heights. For crying out loud, even Jeff Bezos, the CEO of amazon got hacked by cybercriminals who are reportedly from Saudi Arabia. On a more personal note, I don’t remember being scammed online but I do remember something which I think counts as something of a scam.
Time travel to the point when I was 10 years old. I was this enthusiastic kid who desperately longed for a bicycle. It was summer time and all the children of the vicinity was getting a fancy bicycle. I sat one day in front of the TV like any other 10-year old and was cruising through the cartoon channels. This advertisement popped up, which promised a bicycle to the kid who answers a question about the show. Overwhelmed with the opportunity, I quickly grabbed my father’s cell phone and answered the question. That one question lead to a series of questions and I didn’t think twice before answering. This went on for quite a long time.
After three days of constant replying, my dad arrives home with a big frown on his face. he yelled at my mother and I was puzzled. Back of my head I knew that I was next in line. Fright took over me. my father comes up to me and tells me that his company reduced the phone bill from his salary because he had been overusing his phone. He asked me if I knew anything about it. I explained everything. He understood my need for a cycle and just embraced me. with three thousand rupees now gone from my dad’s salary, I could do nothing but apologize and promise him that I wouldn’t repeat such a thing ever again. It was this incident which made me realize that the TV contests or fake lottery prizes are techniques to make money. It was at the age of 17 that I actually knew what scamming really was. Scamming is wrong and being on the receiving end makes you feel conscious about your internet activity. To my mind, one may never know, when a scam is going to take place. We must be careful and cautious about our online activities and transactions
Albuquerque's Blog 