Insights For Success

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Be vigilant! Don't get scammed online

GeneralEdward Kiledjian

I hear horror stories everyday about people getting scammed and swindled online by professional thieves. Sometimes you lose a couple of bucks while others lose thousands. Regardless of the amount, it feels bad. 

Here is an example of an online scam I stumbled on the other day perpetrated on Twitter. 

First you get a tweet that looks "normal". They use various subjects that they know people will be interested in. In the above case, both tweets actually take you to the same place.

Then they send you to a page that looks like a reputable site (Woman's health in this case). They write the copy like it is a real article or news clip. The goal here is to get you excited about their snake oil and to move you to the next step in their scam process.

Notice in this case the actual domain name which is com-april21.us

Interesting that they are now using date based domain names. Just goes to show how many they cycle through to keep tricking people. 

I did a quick WHOIS lookup to see who owns the domain and this is what came up

Notice the ZIP code is 12345. The 768 area code is for Florida not NY. 

The location of the office is in the middle of nowhere. 

Once you fall for their product pitch, they send you here.

Garcinia Cambogia is an ingredient in many fat loss supplements but the claim that it will "make you lose weight without diet or exercise" is a little overblown and should be another warning signal.

Animal and human studies are split but overall it does look like it is beneficial but only as part of a healthy diet and exercise program. 

Warning signals:

  1. URL looks reputable but is actually highly dubious
  2. Site looks like a news report
  3. Throwing names like Dr Oz to gain credibility
  4. Links to a site selling a "miracle" product (aka losing weight without making any lifestyle changes)