Fraud Police Issue Warning to Internet Users

[Brittany]

Our very own Duncan Pollock has just advised WebProWorld of the following Scam Alert, which his local real estate board received from their neighbourhood Fraud Squad:

April 13, 2004
Fraud Unit Police Issue Warning to Internet Users

"The Niagara Regional Police Service Fraud units have been receiving an unusually high number of complaints in the last week from members of the public concerning mysterious charges on their phone bills, which appear to originate from their internet usage.

The phone bills list calls placed to various numbers in foreign countries, such as the Cook Islands, and Sao Tome, which is located in Africa.

These complaints appear to originate as a result of an Internet scam known variously as 'the dialer scam,' 'modem hijacking,' and 'Internet dumping.'

What do they all have in common? They all find different ways to trick the user into downloading a dialer plug-in without reading the fine print.

The typical phone charges are about $3.00 per minute. Some people have had enormous phone bills in the thousands of dollars as a result of this scam.
The victims of this scheme have been enticed into downloading a “free” plug-in for their web browsers under various pretenses, usually the promise of access to free games, videos, psychic readings or pornographic material. The “free” plug-in then disconnects from the user’s Internet Service Provider and installs a new dial-up internet connection to a premium off-shore phone number, making itself the default internet connection. The user then has the access to “free” content, but unwittingly begins to rack up sizeable long-distance charges.

The charges continue to add up, since the default Internet connection is now the premium-priced offshore account.

This not a matter which is being actively investigated at the local level due to the international connections. However, this information is being provided in a proactive manner so that members of the public can take steps to protect themselves from becoming victims.

The Niagara Regional Police Service does not endorse any private software manufacturer, but there are a number of software programs, which can be downloaded free from the Internet to scan for and remove these types of programs.

Alternatively, members of the public can contact a trusted computer repair technician, or their Internet Service Provider for further information on removing malicious content from their computers.
All computer users should practice the following safe-computing practices:

1. Install reliable anti-virus software and keep it up to date. Many of the dialer programs are detected by up-to-date anti-virus software.

2. Employ pop-up blocking software or start using a web browser that supports pop-up blocking natively.

3. Scan your computer regularly for spyware and adware using readily available free software.

4. Be cautious when installing free software, which often contains the afore-mentioned spyware and adware.

5. Unplug your modem at the wall when not using the Internet.

6. Consider installing an Internet Firewall.

7. Keep your operating system up to date with the latest patches and security fixes.

8. Don’t visit illicit sites such as hacking, cracking, warez and porn sites. Be aware that some sites can monitor your computer and install software just by visiting them.

9. Read the fine print before downloading “free” software. Make sure you know what you are agreeing to when you say “Yes” to the End-User Licence Agreement."

[matauri]

I actually had a bit of a laugh about this a few months ago. A client came to me because of very similar with his work computer. I found 81 dialers on his machine! (not to mention all the odd links & continual popups)

Anyway, I cleaned his comp up, and advised him he probably got these from porn sites (he had a lot of porn history & spyware). He swore that no way did he ever visit porn sites & I had a giggle as he drove away... "yeah, right!"

Not even a month later he was back again. "Can I check it again". There they were again, though he was down to about 20 this time. Not bad for 4 weeks I thought! And there it was again, a history full of porn sites. Still again, the same excuse "no, I dont visit porn sites"... again I laughed.

Now I wasnt laughing because he visited porn sites, but more because he kept denying it ("I dont know where they came from!"). So this time he had the net nanny put on, content advisory on his browser on high, firewall on high,etc it would have rivalled Alcatraz ;-)

Within 24 hours, a phone call... "I'm having problems getting some webpages". I ask him for the url telling him that I will check to see if there is problems with the site. He tells me that he has turned the computer off & cant remember it, but he will let me know next time it happens. Again I have a giggle :-)

A couple of months later he wants some software installed, and at the same time I checked to make sure his machine was running good. wow.... no dialers! No sex sites! And he thanked me for how good his computer had been running.

Now I wait for him to bring his home computer in for the same problems. I've often toyed with the idea of doing the same with that if he does ... but then I think "hell, let the guy have some fun at home! I'll be bound to make some money in the near future" ;-)

[Duncan Pollock]

Thank you Brittany for the post.
Perhaps one scary part is the mention that "the matter is not being investigated at the local level."
This means that we're on our own in watching out for this sort of fraudulent activity!
Duncan

[everlife2]

OK...my face is red...I downloaded something that has a 'My Search" search bar placed on my computer. I've been trying to get rid of it for 2 days. Any tips would be appreciated. I've used Norton, and 2 different spyware nukers. I've looked through every file I can find. It happened before and I got rid of it. Became my home screen too. But this time it locked itself on.

Gulp,
Bill
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