Links being dressed up to look official - Printable Version +- Internet Safety Tips (https://internetsafetytips.createmybb4.com) +-- Forum: Safety Center (https://internetsafetytips.createmybb4.com/forum-5.html) +--- Forum: Tips (https://internetsafetytips.createmybb4.com/forum-6.html) +--- Thread: Links being dressed up to look official (/thread-8.html)

Links being dressed up to look official - Reddington - 12-06-2021 A common thing we're seeing with scams now is that scammers will try and make their links look official/real.  Usually they do this by creating a URL that is mostly spelled right, but has a couple letters twisted around. Here is an example: https://i.gyazo.com/98846218650224090413dc987ee4cd5b.png As the days pass, the scammers keep making different variations of these links, but all of them still have the same goal: trick people into thinking they look real. Unsurprisingly, it works!  Why? There are several reasons: People are too trusting or don't know any better.  I think for some people, they have never experienced an online scam before. Up until this point, every link they have clicked has been legitimate, thus it lulls them into this sense of security. In other cases, people are brand new to the online world and have no idea scams exist.  They click things willy nilly and don't think twice. Skimming links. This is something we are all guilty of. We quickly read a link and then click it.  This is what scammers primarily rely on.  You see "discorc" and your mind tricks you into thinking it's "discord", so you click it.  In regards to bullet 1, it's very important that you understand the internet is not a 100% safe place.  People on here can and will scam you without a second thought. You need to be on guard and be careful about who you talk to and what you do.  If you've spent all your time in a small portion of the internet and never ventured out, you're going to be naive and think that every site and every community matches that of the internet you've gone to nonstop for a while.  That's simply not the case. Bullet 2, again, this is something we all do, but it's dangerous.  I cannot stress enough that you take the time to read the URL before clicking it.