Catch of the Day

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Online fraud is nothing new; it is however becoming faster, reaching wider and becoming an extremely effective way to swindle. With the increasing reliance on the internet and importance of email, fraudsters have been taking advantage of people and circumstances. Phishing and pharming are not new terms – as marketers we have to learn to deal with these, not only for our sake, but for the many people that we market to. Keep in mind the amount of time it takes to build up customer trust, and when you do build that trust up – one click could shatter everything.

The next three days will be devoted to online fraud and some scenarios. We will also offer you some best practices on how to help circumvent the impact of these instances.

Phished
A hurricane strikes the coast leaving behind millions of dollars worth of damage and thousands of homeless people. You wish you could do something to help. Then you check your email. It’s as though someone read your mind – there in your inbox is a request for donations through a very well-known and highly reputable charity; a picture of a family in front of their demolished home stares back at you as you type in your credit card number. The hurricane was real but the charity was impersonated.

You’ve been phished
The above scenario actually took place during Katrina; it still takes place every single day. I put my house up on the market and was surprised to find that the 'unique' email ID that I used has suddenly popped up at a number of different places. If the phisher was smart, they would take the time to send me one offer, and try to be persistent. Instead, they are trying to get me to open one of about 30 emails that I receive every single day.