The Sierra Vista Police Department received several calls today from citizens reporting an email scam in which the scammer claims to have access to the victim’s passwords and web cam in order to blackmail the victim.
The scam email claims the victim has been hacked and all their passwords have been acquired. It then states that the scammer installed spyware on the victim’s computer that tracks when the victim accesses adult websites. It also states that the scammer has activated the user’s web cam to record them in compromising situations.
The scammer then offers the victim a one-time deal stating that they will not send out any compromising information or footage providing the victim sends them money, in the form of bitcoin, by an imminent deadline. The scammer claims failing to send money would result in compromising footage being sent to the victim’s social media contacts.
“Scammers use tactics like this to make people panic and send payment before they have time to gather their thoughts and emotions,” SVPD Public Information Officer Scott Borgstadt says. “If you think a hacker has gained personal information, act quickly to secure your accounts but do not comply with the scammer’s demands.”
Tips for avoiding scams
- Do not open unknown emails or attachments, and do not click on unknown links. Links and attachments can download malware onto your computer that can access personal information.
- Protect your computer with spam filters, anti-virus software, and firewalls.
- Act immediately if you think you are a victim of an online scam. If you think your personal information has been compromised, contact the companies you have accounts with immediately to secure them.
- Report the scam to your local law enforcement agency.
- Report the scam to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at www.ic3.gov/complaints. Complaints filed via this website are processed and may be referred to federal, state, local, or international law enforcement for possible investigation.
- Use two-factor authentication on all your accounts to prevent them from being hacked.