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Post by TKennedy on Oct 26, 2022 19:52:25 GMT -5
I got an email that wondered if I had authorized a $499.99 PayPal payment to a Cindy Pohlmann. Of course I hadn’t and figured it was a scam but logged onto my account to check.
Sure enough there it was so I cancelled it but there was a note under it that PayPal was suspicious that it was fraudulent and if so to call a listed number to verify.
Since it was on the official site and I was logged in I figured it was real and called it. Indian or Pakistani guy answers and it was pretty obvious he wanted to get my bank account information for “reimbursement” I got sucked in to a degree and all of a sudden they led me to a website where they had control of my computer. That’s where it ended.
Luckily no known harm was done and I got ahold of the real PayPal support and my bank but I have to have my computer professionally cleaned before the bank will reinstate on line banking.
This was a good one with the number being listed on the my actual PayPal account website. I thought I was savvy but got burned.
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Post by majorminor on Oct 26, 2022 21:08:42 GMT -5
Um. How did they embed a note and phone number on your Pay Pal log in screen?
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Post by drlj on Oct 26, 2022 21:14:31 GMT -5
I get email very often like that. It’s for a $500 payment to Geek Squad or a $1500 charge for an IPad, etc.
Never had anything actually show up on my PayPal account. I am not sure how they could pull that off.
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Post by Cornflake on Oct 26, 2022 22:04:28 GMT -5
I thought I was savvy until I got had. Different scam. Some of these people are pretty smart.
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Post by TKennedy on Oct 26, 2022 22:10:30 GMT -5
Here is a screenshot of how it appeared on my PayPal account after I logged in. This is from my iPad. I originally saw it on my phone where the formatting looked a lot more official. How they got the transaction on my actual account is weird. Not sure even a hacked password would allow that. I have had plenty of fake emails about PayPal payments but the transactions never show up on my actual account.  |
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Post by david on Oct 26, 2022 22:28:33 GMT -5
Wow, that is devious. Glad you caught it. Like you, I think I can detect these scammers, but the fact is, my technical skills are probably as good as they will ever get and will diminish or at least not improve, whereas the scammers are getting more and more sophisticated.
Maybe it is time to reduce means to access credit and assets, though I have no idea how to do that!
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Dub
Administrator
I'm gettin' so the past is the only thing I can remember.
Posts: 19,910 
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Post by Dub on Oct 27, 2022 0:23:37 GMT -5
I got an email that wondered if I had authorized a $499.99 PayPal payment to a Cindy Pohlmann. Of course I hadn’t and figured it was a scam but logged onto my account to check. Critical question. Exactly what steps did you take to log onto your PayPal account? Every detail, keystroke, and click. I strongly suspect that the screenshot you posted is not a shot of your actual account. Also, have you installed all the latest MacOS security updates? Are you running the new Ventura release? Do you run CleanMyMac and Avast? |
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Post by majorminor on Oct 27, 2022 1:34:19 GMT -5
I strongly suspect that the screenshot you posted is not a shot of your actual account. That’s what I’m thinking as well. |
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Post by millring on Oct 27, 2022 5:23:25 GMT -5
If you're not the paranoid type, it just doesn't feel right that such sophisticated scams exist. But they do. Lots of kooky things are a reality. Dar was telling me that her friend was having an office chat with coworkers. One of them said, "Have you tried this?" ...and what "this" was was having a conversation in the room about something totally off the wall .... only to have advertisements for whatever that off the wall thing is shows up on their smart phone. So, to illustrate, they started talking about rotisserie cookers. A short while later someone in the room said, "Hey, look at your phone." Sure enough, ads for rotisserie cookers appeared.
It's not our parents world anymore. And that's not just because clothing styles are ugly.
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Post by TKennedy on Oct 27, 2022 7:52:21 GMT -5
I got an email that wondered if I had authorized a $499.99 PayPal payment to a Cindy Pohlmann. Of course I hadn’t and figured it was a scam but logged onto my account to check. Critical question. Exactly bwhat steps did you take to log onto your PayPal account? Every detail, keystroke, and click. I strongly suspect that the screenshot you posted is not a shot of your actual account. Also, have you installed all the latest MacOS security updates? Are you running the new Ventura release? Do you run CleanMyMac and Avast? I logged in from the website on my phone using my password and the request for money transfer and the message was at the top of my transactions. I immediately cancelled it and called the number listed. I then went to my computer to do the rest and the scam was underway. When I terminated the conversation I contacted PayPal support off the website while not logged in and it was the real thing. They gave me instructions to set up two part security log in. I have Bitdefender and ran a complete system scan last night and four Trojan horses were identified. I will still take it in to have it professionally looked at. It’s an iMac. I think somehow they hacked my password and posted a request for money transfer with the fake note on the actual website. |
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Post by drlj on Oct 27, 2022 7:56:39 GMT -5
Here’s something else scary.
Think of a number from 1 to 10. Don’t tell me what it is.
Are you thinking of it?
The number is 12. Nice try, smart guy. Nice try.
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Post by drlj on Oct 27, 2022 8:04:33 GMT -5
Hackers are 5 steps ahead of the rest of us. I know a few people who have fallen for scams. Hackers depend on a feeling of panic to override common sense and it very often works. Later, when analyzing what happened, people are amazed that they fell for it, but when it happens, logic goes out the window.
I know a guy who turned over control of his computer to someone who called with the “we are from Windows and your computer has been hacked” telephone scam. He was really hacked at that point. I couldn’t believe he fell for it, but panic set in and he fell right into their arms. He realized he was being scammed when the hacker yelled at him for questioning an instruction given.
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Post by billhammond on Oct 27, 2022 8:18:02 GMT -5
Editor instincts might have saved me in this one -- no one is named Cyndeee, with three e's.
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Post by Marshall on Oct 27, 2022 8:20:26 GMT -5
I set up (at Paypal's suggestion) a 2 step verification for every transaction. Even to log into my account. They will text me a verification code to my cell phone every time I purchase something, or go into my account. I haven't changed my password in months. Maybe I should. But the 2 step verification process makes it tougher on the scammers.
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Post by majorminor on Oct 27, 2022 8:22:39 GMT -5
I compared your screen shot to my Pay Pal log in screen and the logo and formatting look spot on to me. I would have been fooled.
Terry did you log in to that screen through an e mail link, or did you you exit the initial e mail and log in to Pay Pal from your separate desk top browser?
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Dub
Administrator
I'm gettin' so the past is the only thing I can remember.
Posts: 19,910
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Post by Dub on Oct 27, 2022 8:39:18 GMT -5
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Post by billhammond on Oct 27, 2022 8:55:47 GMT -5
Also, SMS and email are not secure two-factor authentication (2FA). You need a third-party app that generates a secure code that’s only valid for a very short time, usually less than a minute. I use one called Sentinal because I believe, after trying several and doing some research that it stands way above the rest. Again, editor instincts would cause me to distrust "Sentinal." |
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Post by Marshall on Oct 27, 2022 9:09:51 GMT -5
If you're not the paranoid type, it just doesn't feel right that such sophisticated scams exist. But they do. Lots of kooky things are a reality. Dar was telling me that her friend was having an office chat with coworkers. One of them said, "Have you tried this?" ...and what "this" was was having a conversation in the room about something totally off the wall .... only to have advertisements for whatever that off the wall thing is shows up on their smart phone. So, to illustrate, they started talking about rotisserie cookers. A short while later someone in the room said, "Hey, look at your phone." Sure enough, ads for rotisserie cookers appeared. It's not our parents world anymore. And that's not just because clothing styles are ugly. Oh good. Now I’m going to get ugly clothes ads.  |
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Post by TKennedy on Oct 27, 2022 9:11:09 GMT -5
I compared your screen shot to my Pay Pal log in screen and the logo and formatting look spot on to me. I would have been fooled. Terry did you log in to that screen through an e mail link, or did you you exit the initial e mail and log in to Pay Pal from your separate desk top browser? I logged in separately off the website. I didn’t follow any links. |
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Post by drlj on Oct 27, 2022 9:11:16 GMT -5
Also, SMS and email are not secure two-factor authentication (2FA). You need a third-party app that generates a secure code that’s only valid for a very short time, usually less than a minute. I use one called Sentinal because I believe, after trying several and doing some research that it stands way above the rest. Again, editor instincts would cause me to distrust "Sentinal." You editurs are picky. |
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