Especially in the pre-Christmas period, parcels are often ordered via Amazon. Criminals use this time to steal users’ data* and, in the worst case, credit card data through a false SMS. Watchlist Internet, a project of the Austrian Internet Ombudsman’s Office, warns against such methods.
The criminals would send an SMS saying that the Amazon account will be temporarily blocked if the account information is not updated. Underneath, there is a link where the data can supposedly be entered.
However, the link does not lead to an Amazon page but to a fake page that looks highly similar to the one from Amazon. However, the fake can be recognized by the Internet address – in most fake pages, this has nothing to do with Amazon.
You are asked for your Amazon login data, address, phone number, and birthday on the page. Finally, you must “update” your bank or credit card data. The data then ends up directly with the criminals. Watchlist Internet, therefore, warns against clicking on such SMS links.
What to do if you have already entered data?
Anyone who has already received such an SMS and entered the corresponding information should immediately change their Amazon password. If unknown orders have already been placed, you should contact Amazon support. Likewise, it may be that the credit card must be blocked. A conversation with the credit card provider or the bank will inform you what steps to take.
- source: futurezone.at/picture: (watchlist-internet.at)
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