I get social media notifications constantly from Facebook, Twitter and a dozen others. While at a conference last week I received a LinkedIn notification on my phone from of all people, my 78-year-old father. “Weird,” I thought, “he has been retired for 25 years.” I looked at the profile, it didn’t have any pictures but did list Ohio State University and some other true facts about him. Even my Aunt Mary was a “connection.” I sent him a text, which is about the limit of his tech skills, and asked him about this. His response was “what the heck is LinkedIn?”
Someone created a profile and was going to use that to eventually post something with a link containing malware or conduct some type of phishing. Since it is coming from someone you “know” or “trust” you typically don’t think twice about it. The fraudsters are counting on this. Being informed is your way of not becoming a victim. Attacks are getting more and more specific and sophisticated. The days of mass viruses or overseas prince asking you to hold $10 million are long gone.
The FBI has addressed this increased threat. Read more here.
Concerned about your safety on the web? Start here.
