Top 5 Haiti Scams

Trend Micro Internet Security will provide you real-time security information on your search engine results. Click for a larger image.

One thing that never fails to impress me about the human spirit is the out-pouring of support, assistance and over-all sympathy when tragedy strikes.  World wide, people come together and do or give whatever they can to help those in a time of crisis.  In the aftermath of the devastating earthquake that has stuck Haiti, humanity has once again come together to show how generous and supportive we can be.  And as the internet makes the world smaller, this assistance can be delivered faster than ever before.

Of course the opposite side of humanity often comes to light as well.  There are those who plan, scheme and seek to take full advantage of the outpouring of generosity for their own gains.  With internet technology at their disposal these schemes can be rolled out quicker and take more from unsuspecting victims; people looking to help those in need.

So what are these schemes?  What should we look for, be wary of and most importantly, how do people keep themselves and ultimately those who need help from becoming the victims of these scams?

1. Fake charity or malware sites.

Scammers know those who want to help but might not know where to go are likely to go to Internet search engines for advice.  Fake charitable organizations are springing up online faster than dandelions in a spring meadow.  These scammers use a technique known as Search Engine Poisoning to get their sites to the top of the search engines quickly.  Although they may not stay there, the majority of search engine users tend to trust the top search results as being the most relevant and therefore legitimate organizations.  This gives the scammers precious time at the top of the ranks to dupe as many users as possible.

Our suggestion – always go the extra step to verify the organization you’re looking to donate to is legitimate.  Nothing saves time, money and aggravation better than doing your homework and gathering all of the information before taking action.  Stick to charitable organizations you know such as the Red Cross (www.redcross.org) or contact your local government for information on any grass-root efforts in your area.

Also, a quality security application such as Trend Micro Internet Security will actually provide you with information as to which search engine results have been verified as legitimate, scams or those that have not been verified yet.  Please see the graphic in the article for a demonstration of this feature.  This will give you a good first indication if the site is for real or just out to make a buck.

Or something worse.

2. Twitter tweets and traps.

Many see Twitter as a reliable source for breaking news and information, but just as many legitimate companies use Twitter for marketing purposes, scammers use it to market their fake charities as well.  Using Twitter accounts, target links are spread in an effort to make them look like official charities or news sites related to the Haiti crisis.  This is exacerbated with the use of TinyURL’s that can easily hide a shady link.

Again, be sure to verify the source and destinations of these links.  If in doubt, don’t send the money.  Seek out a reputable organization that you know and trust.

3. Spam and Phishing galore.

Spammers know due to the outpouring of concern over the happenings in Haiti, e-mail users are more likely to open messages with “Haiti” in the subject line.  Many of these are messages designed to appear as though they are sent by not-for-profit or charitable outreach programs. Others use “Haiti” subject lines as a disguise for the usual online pharmaceutical sales, dating-sites or links to other malware infested websites.

As you know, malware sites containing rogue anti-virus programs, Trojans and key loggers are set up to steal user information and potentially damage computer data.  These nefarious attempts at identity and financial theft can be even more dangerous and damaging than fake charities.

It is important to remember that unless you have supplied your email address and signed up to receive newsletters from charity organizations online, they will not send you solicitations for donations.

And as always, keep a reliable and updated security application on your PC and use common sense.  Do not open emails or click links on emails without verifying the source first.

4. Haitian money scam.

Like the infamous Nigerian Money Scam or 419 scam, e-mails from supposed Haiti Earthquake victims that paint a grim picture of life and suffering in Haiti, begging for assistance are becoming more prevalent.  These e-mails generally include a very convenient link to send donations as well.  In most cases the link directs the user to a malware site that will infect the user’s computer with Trojans or key loggers.

As in all cases, common sense and a good mail filtering security program is still your best defense.

5. So-“phish”-tication.

Phishing attempts are becoming more sophisticated.  We’re all pretty used to seeing the horribly written phishing and spam emails, wrought with misspellings and grammatical errors.  New phishing attempts detected are sophisticated emails impersonating reputable charities such as the Red Cross.  These lengthy emails include data and statistics that compel the reader to donate immediately to help the victims of Haiti and other disasters.  However, the spoofed links in the email lead back to fake donation sites of profiteers or malware sites aiming to steal identity and personal information.

All the same suggestions apply here – charities such as the Red Cross will not send e-mails asking for donations unless you’re already on an e-mail list with them.  Keep your security software updated and avoid clicking links in unsolicited e-mails.

When in doubt Aspire Technology Solutions has security experts on staff that can answer your questions and even check on the legitimacy of e-mails and websites.  We also carry a wide range of security products for businesses and home PC’s that can be purchased on-line and downloaded for immediate use.

We are all concerned for the victims of the earthquake in Haiti, but our assistance needs to be directed to the organizations that can provide help to those that need it.

Newsletters or Spam?

Newsletters are a fantastic and fast way to get information out into the world of potential or current clients. An important question often asked by businesses preparing to release newsletter campaigns is, how do we avoid our newsletters being labeled as spam?
There is no simple answer. While your e-mails may pass the requirements of the CAN-SPAM Act, the recipients may take no more kindly to your newsletters than they would every day spam.

What is the CAN-SPAM Act?
The CAN-SPAM Act is a law put into place to set rules and necessities for commercial email. Rest assured that any business with good intentions can easily follow the requirements of the CAN-SPAM Act without sacrificing newsletter content or volume.

1. Clearly identify who you are.
Use an accurate originating domain name and email address that will identify the person or business that is sending the newsletter.

2. Use truthful and accurate e-mail subject lines.
Be sure that the subject of your e-mail reflects the content of the message that is being sent out and doesn’t attempt to trick the recipient into opening the email.

3. Identify the e-mail as an ad or newsletter.
This is pretty straightforward and recipients will appreciate it. Be honest about what you are sending out!

4. Include your valid postal address.
Tell people where you are located. This can be your business street address, a PO Box registered with the U.S. Postal service for your business or a private mailbox that has been registered to receive commercial mail under Postal Service regulations.

5. Provide an option for recipients to opt out of receiving future emails.
It is vital that you and your business respect the wishes of those you are sending e-mail advertisements to and always provide an easy to find explanation of how they may choose to no longer receive e-mails from you.

6. Do not delay in honoring opt-out requests.
If a recipient chooses to no longer receive e-mails from your business, it is imperative that their request be met. Your newsletter manager must be able to process opt-out requests at least 30 days after the newsletter has been sent. An opt-out request must be honored within 10 business days.

You may not charge them a fee, request any personally identifying beyond an email address, or force them to take any other steps other than sending a reply email or visiting a single page to make their opt-out request. You cannot sell or transfer the email addresses of people who have opted out of receiving emails from your business.

7. Be sure to monitor what others are doing on behalf of your business.
If you decide to hire another company to take over your business’ e-mail marketing, your business will still be held responsible for whether or not your advertisements comply with the law.

As I mentioned above, even as you ensure that your e-mail advertisements comply with the CAN-SPAM Act, the receivers of your newsletters may still be less than pleased to see your e-mails in their inbox.

Trust is beyond essential when it comes to the relationship between a business and its clients. Having your newsletter disregarded as spam does a lot to damage that trust.
There are a few guidelines you can apply to your e-mail advertisements to both respect your customers and avoid being labeled as spam senders.

Just as you must provide an “opt-out” option, provide an opt-IN option as well.
Offering a clear option to receive newsletters from you business is arguably the best way to build a list of clients who WANT the information your e-mail advertisements provide.

Be honest about how many e-mails you send out.
A person may be interested in receiving newsletters from you, but not want to receive an e-mail every week. Consider creating different e-mail advertisement campaigns and providing options (weekly or monthly) that people may choose from to ensure that they are receiving exactly what they would like.

Above all, respect the requests you are sent!
If a user asks to be removed from your email list, honor their request. We have all felt the frustration of repeatedly asking to be removed from a call list only to get more calls from the same company. Disregarding requests to opt-out will quickly lead to your business being reported as “a spam sender”

Effective e-mail advertising can be boiled down to one simple rule:

Always provide information to those who want it, and do not bother those who don’t.

Interested in sending out newsletters? Aspire Technology Solutions provides fantastic Newsletter applications included in our Hosting packages. Click here to learn more!

Viruses, Pop-Ups and Spyware? OH MY!

Unprotected, the average PC is attacked by Malware within 50 seconds of going online.  If you go online with your home computer, you need protection against online threats such as viruses, spyware, phishing attempts, pharming and identity theft. 

These are real threats, putting your data and even your personal security at risk. 

One of my colleagues once phrased it as, “Going online without security software is like jumping into a shark tank wearing nothing but raw meat.”  A colorful analogy, to be sure, but an accurate one.  Every day more new viruses, spyware, Trojans and other malicious applications are released into the wilds of the internet.  Experts (and not just me) say it’s close to the range of 22,000 new malware samples per day. 

What is really at risk when you leave your PC unprotected?  First off, and probably most importantly is time and money.  The expenses of having to have a virus removed can cost 10-times as much as a one-year subscription to a consumer level security application.  This is further exacerbated through down-time and the loss of productivity, not to mention the loss of data. 

I mean, who reading this article doesn’t depend on their PC these days to help them find information online, pay bills, manage bank accounts, communicate with friends and family or Twitter endlessly about how they had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch?  Just from a life-management perspective, how much time do you lose without having these conveniences at the tips of your fingers? 

And to compound this further, one infection might not even be noticeable, but simply serve to open doors for many more, and more damaging infections to creep in.  Malware programs designed to propagate across a network, key-loggers that try to steal your personal information or bugs designed simply to cripple your PC and make it unusable. 

Yet, so many people walk into our office with horribly outdated security software, or none at all. 

It is sad.  Of course, we fix their problem for an affordable rate, and not a single one ever walks out without a new security software install with a current subscription. 

But it doesn’t have to be this way. 

What is running, or not running on your PC?  Do you have P2P applications such as LimeWire or Kazaa?  They might seem like a convenient way to download files and applications for “free” but their networks are also littered with infected files and malicious applications disguised as popular downloads.  Also, an improperly installed P2P application will run at all times and possibly leave your entire hard drive open to the P2P network – did you want to share your new mp3’s or your personal financial files? 

Has your PC slowed down recently?  Does it take a long time to finish a boot cycle?  Do you have intermittent and unexplainable internet connection interruptions?  Do you get messages telling you about how many malware applications have been found followed by offers to buy some really professional looking (or sounding) security software you’ve never actually heard of until now?

 All of these symptoms may point to a possible malware infection. 

So, how do you fix this?  What precautions should you take? 

First off, having current security software with an active subscription AND making sure it stays updated is the first step.  If you don’t have that, get it. 

Secondly, making sure all of the current Microsoft security updates are installed.  Yes, yes, it is all Microsoft’s fault there are all these viruses….  Uh, no.  Sorry, it’s not.  They need to make sure their software is secure, for sure, but wouldn’t it be nice if we could just trust people won’t do bad things?  It is still the fault of those who write and distribute the malware.  Microsoft, owning 98% of the operating system market, is just their biggest target. 

Different soap-box there; we’ll go off on that tangent another time.  

Third, make sure your data is backed up.  Current and complete.  Having a computer crash due to any reason is always less painful when the data on it is duplicated somewhere else and can easily be restored.  We’ll discuss backups in another blog article. 

A good first step is to stop using P2P applications and make sure your network is secured.  A good Firewall can be your best friend – another topic we’ll address at a future time.  This also includes putting a security key and encryption on your wireless network. 

Those are some of the precautions – but nothing, and I mean NOTHING goes as far as having some common sense. Don’t open random email attachments, don’t surf questionable websites, make your internet passwords strong and keep them secure. 

And if you need help, we’re always around to answer questions.