Plus, one U.S. university pays ransomware attackers $475K and spyware is found on over a thousand iOS apps
According to COVID-19 and Stimulus Reports by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), there have been over 180,000 complaints of coronavirus-related scams this year, and the number continues to climb. Almost 50% of those complaints included financial loss, with an average amount of $290 stolen from each victim. As a whole, U.S. consumers lost over $120 million to pandemic-related scams. An FTC spokesperson told The Washington Post that scams do tend to increase following natural disasters, but complaints typically total in the thousands, not the tens of thousands as it is with the pandemic scams. The spokesperson added that the only event in recent history that spawned a similar surge of scams was the financial crash of 2009.
“COVID-19 is one major disaster, and as such, cybercriminals are taking advantage of it,” commented Avast Security Evangelist Luis Corrons. “It may become worse as the pandemic plays out. When the expected vaccine is released, we’ll see an increase in scams targeting people who want to get it as soon as possible.” In addition to vaccine scams, experts caution that new scams will emerge surrounding the burgeoning housing crisis, as a portion of the population faces rent or mortgage bills they cannot pay. In the meantime, fraudsters are scamming victims with phony sales of masks, face shields, and miracle cures, and fraudulent information about government stimulus pa ..
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