Happy Friday Attila,
A new batch of malicious email campaigns were recently discovered by ProofPoint that use piano-themed emails to lure victims into advance fee fraud (AFF) scams.
In this AFF scam, the threat actor offers up a free piano due to something like like a death in the family. When you reply, the bad guy will instruct you to contact a specific moving company to arrange delivery. That specific company is.... you guessed it, fake and run by the same scammer. The “moving company” will only deliver the piano if the you pay them a hefty shipping and delivery fee up front.
The Takeaway
The big red flag here should be that the "moving company" is asking for payment by Zelle, Cash App, PayPal, Apple Pay, or cryptocurrency. They're also using high-pressure language in their emails, for example:
"You are not the only person inquiring about the piano. We are going to be delivering it to the first person that pays for delivery."
Advance fee fraud scams are nothing new - Nigerian Prince, lottery and sweepstakes scams, rental property scams, charity scams and check overpayment scams just to name a few. These bad actors wouldn't keep running them if they didn't work. They all involve asking for an advance payment with the promise of a greater reward or service that never materializes.
Here's what you should pay attention to:
1) Unsolicited Requests: Be wary of unexpected offers of money, prizes, or opportunities that require an upfront fee.
2) Urgency and Pressure: Scammers often create a sense of urgency or pressure to act quickly without due diligence.
3) Requests for Personal Information or Payments: Legitimate organizations rarely ask for personal information or advance payments via email or phone.
With AI, these scammers are way better than they were even just a year ago. Be sure that you, your family and your business remain cautious and skeptical.
Stay safe out there.
-A
New Friday Funnies
Why did Mozart get rid of his chickens?
Because they always ran around screeching “Bach! Bach! Bach!”
What makes pirates such good singers?
They can hit the high Cs!
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