The best advice when it comes to being safe online is to use caution. Do not assume that what you are seeing is genuine.
This is not the easiest thing to accept. For so long, people were able to trust the phone calls they received and the mail in their letter boxes. Unfortunately, with all the wonderful things that digitisation has brought into our everyday lives, there is a dark side – and even though it may bring considerable benefits and advantages, we need to be aware of the danger signs. Precaution and awareness should always be a priority!
Cybercriminals around the world use common tricks to get people to engage with them. They can create fake profiles, for example, using stolen photos, videos and even voice clips. And of course, they also know that those who see these profiles are more likely to react positively if they recognise the person.
This is why you must be especially wary of well-known people or celebrities if they are pitching something that strikes you as odd, especially when they are promising financial returns. If it is too good to be true, then it is usually fake.
Apart from fake identities, scammers will also try to lure you in with large cash prizes or expensive rewards, with one common scam involving surveys. Remember that legitimate companies and services do not randomly ask individuals to complete surveys – and they do not offer money for doing so!
Ask yourself who could be interested in your input and why they might offer substantial sums of money. Isn’t it more likely that this is a scammer trying to get as much information about you as possible – not to mention trying to get access to your financial accounts?
This is one of the main messages of a short clip currently available on national television as part of a cyber awareness campaign delivered by MITA, in collaboration with MITA-NCC and the Malta Police Force. The campaign aims to increase awareness about digital security through videos that place audiences in realistic, everyday scenarios where their online safety may be threatened or negatively impacted.
Under the slogan “Int Importanti”, the campaign emphasises the importance of staying safe online and looking out for one another to help make the internet a safer place.
What can you do if you receive a call that you suspect is a scam? First of all, do not give them any information.
If you have received a scam message, then you should report the incident to the Police via their website pulizija.gov.mt or by calling tel. 21224001.