Happy Valentines Day

I love you! ♥ ♥ ♥
You make my heart beat out of my chest! ♥ ♥ ♥
You are the most sexy person I know, let's get together.  ♥ ♥ ♥
I have this awesome present for you. ♥ ♥ ♥
You make me happy! ♥ ♥ ♥
We are destined to be together! ♥ ♥ ♥
Now let me have all the money in your bank account and leave me alone!

Of course they don't quite say that now do they? But boils down to the same thing. There are people getting scammed every day, every where.

We all shake our head and say, "How do they get away with it?" How can anyone be so stupid to fall for a criminal intent on getting your money. This criminal works on our emotions and they know which emotions are the best to work!

There are all kinds of viruses....Trojans, worms, root-kits, exploits, stacks, and there is social engineering. This form of virus is not a program, it is a person. And this type of person is out to get your information and they have learned the best ways to do it.

How do social engineers get their information? They convince you to give it to them. They make you feel like you are not fulfilled as a person unless you are giving them the information they need to rip you off. And they are very, very good at it.

There is a scam going around where a fraudster calls someone, usually an older person and claims to be their grandchild who is threatened with jail in Mexico, or at least another state. They need cash in a hurry to be able to get home and clear things up. Now, not something you would fall for, so we think. But what if you got the call in the middle of the night? Would you really be able to pin it as a scam?

These social engineers do not just pick up the phone and start dialing. They do their homework. They find out basic information. Information that we let people have. One gold mine for that information is your computer. Ok, not necessarily your computer, but your social sites. They watch your profiles and target the ones that they feel comfortable stepping into. We all have something that they can use.

The create the perfect psychological environment to deploy their attack. They are the nicest people you will ever talk to, or chat with, or exchange emails with. They are confident, know what is best for you and how to take care of that problem you never knew existed. How awesome is that?

Big targets for social engineering is to getting information from large companies. But there are also those that target you, the individual sitting at the computer. A large target for criminals is the lonely. And they take full advantage of these people.

Dating sites can be dangerous places. A friend of mine decided to try one out. The responses were  fast and furious. She was bombarded with all these desperate men(?) wanting to talk to her. She said is was like standing in the middle of Walmart on black Friday, only it was in her office! Did she let anything slip? Did they get that jewel that will allow them to take advantage? I believe she is savvy enough to have not let anyone get that information.

I don't want to say that dating sites are all dangerous. The sites that are more reputable are the ones that take care to keep social engineers away. They are the ones that require you to register and have safety policies implemented. If you are going to consider a dating site, research it. I have seen ads where a one dating site bashes a second for not letting everyone on it. For me, that is an advertisement for the second. That means the second one is monitoring who they allow on.

So for all you lonely hearts out there find something you enjoy to do and find a way to volunteer doing it. But, even then, hold your personal information close.

So friends, I have to tell you I ♥ you! All I want from you is to see your computer secure!
Happy Valentines Day and
Keep the BugOff!