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Brian Contos

Brian Contos
Senior Director & Customer Security Strategist Brian Contos, CISSP, is senior director of emerging ...

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Hackers Reading CNN: Cybercriminals and Disaster Scam Sites

Thursday, March 17, 2011 at 10:47am by Brian Contos
Brian Contos

The world is a caring and giving place when facing powerful natural disasters that affect the lives of thousands. People all over the world find ways to pitch in and help – a heartwarming showing of humanity at its best.

With humanity at its best also comes humanity at its worst. Approximately two hours after the 9.0 Earthquake hit northeast Japan; we spotted the first potential donation scam site.  Since then, we’ve been keeping an eye on the hundreds of domains that have been registered.

This is not the first time we’ve seen criminals take advantage of disaster or trending topics. Last January, we saw how easy it was for cybercriminals to take advantage of the earthquake in Haiti. We also saw the same scams and malware distribution linked to the Chilean earthquake last year.

It’s no surprise that cybercriminals exploit trending news, from pop culture stories like Charlie Sheen’s meltdown to breaking world news.  As you’re browsing various sites for the hottest topics and latest news, there are a few ways to ensure that you’re safe from malicious malware. While surfing the news sites, be sure to always rely on familiar sources. If you’re looking for the most updated news, go to credible news sites that you always trust. If you’re looking to donate to relief efforts, make sure you’re going to well-known organizations and foundations. Try not to go through different routes and sites, but instead, type the URL directly into your browser. For more tips, check out the blog post from our cyber mom, Tracy Mooney on Donation Scams for Relief Efforts and recommendations from our Labs team on relief donation efforts.  Our hearts go out to the victims in Japan and we hope everyone stays safe.

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