Cybercriminals Attempt To Entice Internet Users With Counterfeit Google+ Invites

By Author: eccuni
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Google+ is the latest venture of Google in social media business. Google aims to compete with Facebook through the new initiative, the most popular social networking site. As was expected, the new site has generated lot of interest among people. However, Google had to suspend sending new invites due to large number of requests, which the company has termed as 'insane demand'. The company apparently wants to expand the user base in a controlled manner. One of the major challenges for Facebook has been to deal with the onslaught of various types of scams. The popularity of the site makes it one of the favorite destinations for cybercriminals. Google+ also faces similar risk of being the target of cybercriminals. As such, controlled phasing out of invites seems to be a rational approach. However, scammers are still attempting to take advantage of the interest among people to join the new social media site.

Security researchers at Trend Micro recently identified a website, which attempts to leverage the demand for Google+ invites. The person owning the website claims that he has received 1000 additional invites for being ...
... a friend of an employee to pass on free memberships, and offers free download of the invite. Internet users who fall prey to the scam and click on the link are lead to a survey page, wherein scammers ask them to answer any of the several surveys.

Visitors, who choose to close the survey page are led to another site wherein they are sought to answer one of the surveys to download the invite for free or download a premium invite by subscribing to 3 days, one month, quarterly or half yearly membership. The site urges visitors, who choose to download free invite by answering the surveys to provide valid information to download the invite or risk permanent ban from the site. On completion of the survey, the site urges people to share their contact number. According to the security firm, visitors who enter the mobile number inadvertently also subscribe to certain clubs, which would charge them specific fees on daily basis. As such, visitors of site end up making payments and disclosing their personally identifiable information as well as contact details rather than getting invite for the Google+.

Internet users must be cautious of dubious schemes, and avoid answering to survey scams. They must be cautious, while disclosing personal and financial information. Following security blogs, adherence to vendor's security advisories and alerts by Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERTs) and leveraging online computer degree programs may help Internet users in understanding prevailing security threats and inculcating safe online computing practices.

Professionals qualified in IT masters degree programs and security certifications may help developers in understanding internal as well as external security risks, identifying discrepancies and initiating corrective measures. The vibrant threats in the security environment require proactive action by counter crime agencies. Security professionals qualified in online technology degree programs may help counter crime professionals in tracing and blocking fraudulent schemes. Timely sharing of threat information between organizations, Internet security firms and counter crime agencies may help in bringing perpetrators of crime to justice.