Cyber criminals have a reputation for constantly coming up with new ways to scam us into handing over login details or sensitive data.
And while you might think your team members would recognize a fraudulent email or scam if they saw one, you might be surprised. We’ve seen a lot of intelligent people – including many business leaders – fall for various types of scams over the years.
One of the latest scams is very retro…and that might be why people are falling for it.
In this newest trick, cyber criminals are going back to the basics – they’re sending USB drives in the mail.
The packaging and branding on the drives suggests they’re from Microsoft (they aren’t).
The included message states that there’s an updated version of Microsoft Office Professional Plus on the drive and it needs to be installed immediately.
But this isn’t true at all. Microsoft has confirmed that these packages aren’t genuine. They’re warning people that they would never send out unsolicited packages.
If you plug the drive into your computer, it will detect a “virus” and instruct you to call a support line.
Of course, this fake “support line” will connect you with the cyber criminals behind the scam. They’ll pretend to remove the virus, aiming to gain your trust. Then they’ll ask for payment details to help complete your subscription setup.
It’s old fashioned, but the mixture of the physical USB, the belief it’s from Microsoft, and the assumed “support line” would be compelling for someone who’s busy and just wants to get back to work.
We’re more inclined to expect elaborate, clever attacks to come through our email. However, this mix of events can catch us with our guards down.
Play it safe and warn everyone in your business about this scam.
This is also a good time to review the software and staff training you use to protect your business.
It’s important to have the right combination of the two, and we can help with that. Contact us to speak with one of our experts about how we can support you.
Published with permission from Your Tech Updates.
