Spot the Scam: Fake Halloween Shops, Texas Roadhouse, Best Buy, Verizon, Amazon, Tesco, and MORE!

Check out the top scams of the week! Would you be able to spot the scams?

Halloween online shopping scams

Do you know who is already super excited about Halloween? Scammers! This week we spotted 9 times more Halloween shopping scam websites than last week. Be careful!

Fake shopping sites always offer irresistible discounts or too-good-to-be-true sales campaigns.

What’s more, these fake online shops always emphasize that the discount is limited or use a countdown timer, trying to rush you into making a purchase in a hurry:

It’s important to realize that there is no guarantee when it comes to disputes or refunds if you buy goods from non-legitimate shopping websites, too.

For more tips on spotting online shopping scam sites, please check out this post.

Texas Roadhouse Facebook voucher scam

“Like & register for free food from Texas Roadhouse!” Recently a post from a fake Texas Roadhouse Facebook fan page that claimed to be giving out food vouchers went viral. Watch out, the giveaway campaign is 100% fake!

Pretending to be Texas Roadhouse, scammers tried to get people to like and share the post and register for the lucky draw campaign via a link. Be careful. It’s a phishing scam!

Phishing scams are when scammers impersonate famous brands and try to entice you into opening malicious links. The phishing links may lead to:

• Fake online survey pages that state you can claim a gift by completing an online questionnaire. After you fill out the survey, you are prompted to enter personal information such as credit card numbers before your “gift” can be delivered.
• Fake login pages that seem to belong to various brands. These pages require you to submit log-in credentials to view your delivery status, change your settings, or whatever other task the scammers have said that you need to complete.
  Scammers can record any sensitive information you enter on these fake pages and use it to commit cybercrimes. For example, they could hack into your bank account and withdraw your money or steal your identity. Don’t let them!

COVID Vaccine DMV SMS phishing

Proof of vaccination is now required in many places. That’s why scammers have been impersonating government agencies and asking people to validate their personal information to receive a COVID pass. 

Posing as the New York Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), scammers ask you to update your COVID vaccination status:

new york dmv covid-19 vaccine driver license waiver validation,validate your details below; href=<URL> click link

The link takes you to a fake New York DMV page, requiring you to enter personal information including your Social Security number. As we’ve mentioned above, this information will only end up in the scammers’ hands:

Best Buy iPhone 13 SMS phishing

Ever since the iPhone 13 came out at the end of September, we’ve detected 5 times more fake Best Buy text messages about iPhone 13 raffles:

Tracy we sent you newly launched iPhone13Pro. Confirm your address <URL>

Again, the links lead to fake online survey pages where, if you fall for the scam, you’ll end up exposing your personal information like credit card numbers. Don’t fall for it!

Verizon $1000 SMS phishing

Posing as a Verizon employee, scammers trick you into thinking that they are giving out $1000. They ask you to send your phone number to another number to get the money. Don’t take the bait!

hello! how are you doing today? this is danny from verizon network company, we are still giving out $1000 to the user of our verizon service for the period of covid-19 pandemic.do you use verizon network? if yes kindly text your number to this number (773) 906-3596 and receive your $1000 asap thanks.

“Answer & Win!” email scams

Scammers also love to send you emails, saying you can win a gift card by clicking on an embedded button. Again, DON’T fall for it. That button also contains a phishing link! In certain cases, malware will start to download once you click on it, too. Here are some of the cases we found:

1. Amazon £500 Gift Card

Source: Reddit

2. Tesco £500 Gift Card

Source: Reddit

How to Protect Yourself

• Double-check the sender’s mobile number/email address.
• Shop only on legitimate online stores!
• Free gifts or prizes are always a major red flag.
• Reach out to an organization’s customer service directly for help and support.
• NEVER click links or attachments from unknown sources. Use Trend Micro Check to detect scams with ease!

1. After you’ve pinned the Trend Micro Check browser extension, it will block dangerous sites for you automatically:

2. Send links or screenshots of suspicious text messages to Trend Micro Check on WhatsApp for immediate scam detection.

Don’t forget to add an extra layer of protection to your device with Trend Micro Maximum Security! It includes Web Threat Protection, Ransomware Protection, Anti-phishing, and Anti-spam Protection to help you combat scams and cyberattacks. Click the button below to give it a try:

Did you successfully spot the scams? Remember, always CHECK before giving out personal information. If you found this article helpful or interesting, please SHARE it to help protect your friends and family!