Understanding how these scams work can help you avoid them and warn others not to fall for them either.
Scammers will cold-call potential victims and attempt to convince them they are eligible for a refund.
Security software likeantivirusor antimalware is commonly cited, but no two scams are quite the same.
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They may attempt to convince targets that the scammer is required to return this money by law.
Less complex scams may simply ask for payment details from the victim, for “depositing” money.
Other forms of this scam may involve an “administration” fee.
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This sort of scam is traditionally known as the 419 scam or advance-fee scam.
To process the full refund, the scammer will ask the victim to pay a small processing fee.
Much of the time, there’s a lot more to this scam.
This is particularly true when the scammer is supposedly refunding security software.
Scammers will convince targets that they need to install, uninstall, or update software to proceed.
They will ask you to confirm the amount by logging in to your online banking accounts.
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Refreshing the page would reveal that no payment was made.
Scammers can’t simply send money to themselves using your account, even with remote access to your machine.
They will attempt to manipulate a target by getting irate, upset, or even aggressive.
Since they have remote access to your setup, they have the upper hand here.
They may installransomware, or even delete (or promise to delete) precious data like photos and documents.
Some scammers will attempt to double-dip and target previous successful victims.
The scam then proceeds in a manner that promises to recover the lost funds.
In the event a company goes bankrupt, companies usually don’t have to return any money.
Accounts and assets are frozen, and customers are the ones that lose out.
If the money requires a “processing fee” or similar, it’s a scam.
Related:What Is Smishing, and How Do You Protect Yourself?
Search the internet for any numbers they give you.
Legitimate companies won’t mind you doing this, but scammers will.
Phone calls fromnumbers that are very similar to yoursare probably scams.
Incidents ofSMS phishing or “smishing"have exploded in recent years.
Scammers will evenimpersonate close family membersby pretending loved ones have new contact information.
