On Valentine’s Day, words like “Valentine,” “chocolate,” and “date” are the perfect camouflage to entice potential victims into clicking on a malicious link, downloading malware, or saying “Yes” to a date with a shady online character. Cybersecurity experts at VPNOverview warn of potential Valentine’s Day scams and how to prevent them.
Types of Valentine’s Day scams
Seasonally themed online scams are not uncommon. Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Christmas are notorious for ramping up cyber criminals’ efforts to lure people with money to spend or romantics with a soft heart into their online traps. Valentine’s Day especially makes people more susceptible than usual.
Cyber-related Valentine scams range from:
- Romance scams
- Malicious malware to spoofing websites.
Romance scams
Valentine’s Day can be exciting, but it can also lead to heartbreak, embarrassment, and financial loss. The Guardian recently revealed Victim Support data indicating a 38% increase in romance fraud victims needing support. Criminals will search dating sites, apps, chat rooms, and other social media networking sites attempting to build relationships to get your personal information or your money.
Once the scammer has established trust with their target, they quickly unveil a “money problem.” Common scam angles – and giveaways – are a sick relative, a medical emergency, a stolen wallet, passport or visa, or a last-minute plane ticket price hike, asking the victim to cough up the money to cover replacement or the unexpected expense.
Unfortunately, most victims of romance scams or catphishing are hesitant to report being taken advantage of due to embarrassment, shame, or humiliation. Nonetheless, it is essential to report online scams to the platform you are using and file a complaint with the relevant authorities in your country of residence.
Valentine’s Day malware
In the lead-up to Valentine’s Day, cybersecurity company Kaspersky analysed malware using the names of over 20 popular dating apps. The keyword “dating” alone revealed 1,963 unique malicious files disguised as legitimate applications. Two-thirds were masked as Tinder, and one-third of the files were linked to Badoo.
“The danger these malicious files present varies from file to file, ranging from Trojans that can download other malware to ones that send expensive SMS messages to adware, making it likely that every ping a user gets is some sort of annoying ad notification rather than a message from a potential date,” Kaspersky explains.
For example, one of the applications that looks like Tinder is, in fact, a banking Trojan that attempts to gain all rights necessary to steal money from the user. Another application declares itself as “Settings” right after installation. Next, it shows a fake error message and disappears, but there is a high likelihood that it will return with unwanted ads a few days later.
How to avoid these scams
Criminals follow money and soft hearts. Fortunately, there are various steps users can take to avoid falling victim to Valentine’s Day online threats and scams:
- When online, be as anonymous as possible. Avoid sharing personal information, shop as a guest, and use a VPN for extra privacy.
- Do not install apps from untrusted sources, even if they seem to be actively advertised or “recommended.”
- Get familiar with the privacy controls on dating websites or dating apps such as Tinder or Grinder.
- Be aware of what you click on.
- Take note of giveaways such as email spelling errors or an unfamiliar sender.
- Type in a website’s URL into your browser window yourself instead of clicking through from a link you’ve received or a message that popped up on social media or in a text message.
- Choose unique and strong passwords for all of your accounts.
- Install the latest software, patches, and app updates. They are important to your digital safety and cybersecurity and help protect your data.
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