Hackers Continue To Shamelessly Exploit Japan Disasters

In the wake of the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, hackers took the gloves off to spread spam and phishing scams to computer users who may have otherwise donated to relief funds.

It was not too soon after the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami took place that hackers were steadily spreading vicious spam and phishing campaigns designed to dupe computer users. Some of the spam campaigns consisted of email messages that ask for help for Japanese earthquake and tsunami victims. Other instances were compromised of newly registered URLs that were setup to be phishing sites that could steal personal information from computer users. Alvin Estevez, president of Enigma Software Group, said in a recent post on Forbes.com that "Cyber crooks have positioned themselves to capitalize on the recent events in a burgeoning variety of electronic attacks."

It can be said that hackers have no type of regard to the nature massive lost of life that the Japan earthquake and tsunami disasters have brought to the Japanese. The further support that notion, hackers have spread their malicious campaigns to social networks such as Facebook where they spread fake video links that are suppose to have footage of the disasters. As you may have guessed, these video links never really display a video but automatically post a link to the user's Facebook. This is a form of Like-Jacking which is a process of tricking a user into clicking on a link but the clicking action is essentially processing a Facebook LIKE function. Whenever the LIKE button is clicked on a specific link or post, Facebook will automatically post the related link to the user's wall.

The main objective for hackers who are exploiting the Japan disasters is to defraud victims and take advantage of ones who may be susceptible to donating to a Japan relief fund. Sure there are several legitimate relief funds and organizations to donate money too such as the Red Cross. But hackers thrive on the very idea that they can mimic a relief fund and collect the money themselves only it will never make it to the victims in Japan. Instead, the money is collected personally by the cybercrooks and they may steal credit card credentials at the same time.

How do you avoid the exploitation of hackers targeting those who are willing to donate to Japan relief fund organizations?

• First, you must never download email attachments from messages that you do not know where they come from. Any links contained within a suspicious email should never be clicked. Also, never relinquish personal information over an email such as your social security number and/or credit card information.
• Second, always verify the source of any relief fund asking for donations. Because the Japan disaster is so devastating, there are several reputable relief organizations that will be taking donations. Do not assume that one that is solicited to you is legitimate. Do your research by searching online via Google.
• Lastly, to help stop the spread of extortionist and hackers taking advantage of the Japan disasters, report any suspicious activity to the authorities. By reporting scrupulous hackers, you will prevent others from becoming victims to hacker scams. You can always file a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center on their website at www.ic3.gov.

Have you seen a suspicious solicitation that may have been asking for donations to the Japanese disaster victims? If so, what did it look like and how did you get it?