Description: This post is meant to teach people about scams and how to avoid them. These scams can happen to website owners, but that doesn’t mean they can’t happen to everyone.
Wow, There are Way too many of These
Scams are everywhere these days, it’s literally impossible not to run into them now. However, the internet is one of the biggest places for scams due to the technology and content connected to it. While most of these are directed toward kids these days, a good amount of them can still fool adults. So today, we’re going over the types of scams on the internet, and how to avoid them while running a website. So without further ado, these are the most popular scams for website developers!
Phishing for Compliments (That was such a Bad Pun)
When I first set up my contacts page, I was hoping to get some nice comments on my website. Maybe some feedback on the website, or compliments about it. But the first comment I ever got was not what I was expecting. Let me break this story down for you and along the way explain phishing.
Phishing is a form of scam that usually comes in the form of emails or comments. They usually use information from your personal life or will try to entice you into doing what they want. While there are a few phishing scams that can catch even the most seasoned web developer off guard, honestly, they’re pretty easy to spot. Now let’s go back to the story.
Let me set the scene, it’s a warm day out. People are getting ready for schoolwork today, we’re talking about, getting settled in, and then I log into my website to see that I have my first comment!
Now you have to understand that I had the comment page up for two weeks at that point and hadn’t gotten any responses yet. So to say that I was excited was an understatement. That was until I read the name… Christian Familia.
OKAY, no big deal, right? People have weird names all the time. Then I read the message…
“Hello, I’m looking for a strong independent businesswoman for future business opportunities. All I need is your mom’s social security number.”
My disappointment was immeasurable, and my day was ruined. But, this comment does shed light on a few tactics that phishers use. First off notice that they call me a woman at the start of the email. Half of the time phishers don’t even try to look up any information and just start typing. Second, notice that they mention business twice. They probably thought that this would make the email look professional (spoiler alert; it didn’t work). Third, they (try to) compliment me by calling me “strong” and “independent”, which is tham buttering me up. Lastly, they asked for my mom’s social security number, need I say more?
I’m not Sure How this Helps My SEO
Similar to phishing, SEO fraud starts with an email or comment. If you own a website they’ll tell you that they can help improve your SEO, and all you need to do is give them access to your email or website. And then these scammers will do, nothing (they may also take your money and website). These guys are a little harder to spot than phishers so people trying to help others with their SEO is more common than you think. But there are a few ways to spot these scams.
Owen’s SEO Fraud Spotting Tips
- Are they trying to sell you a certain service that they say will improve your SEO?
- Are they requesting access to your email?
- Do they work under a brand name you’ve never heard of before?
- Are they asking for any access to the website other than viewer or editor?
If any of these list items relate to the email, it may be a fraud. Additionally, look for similar clues we talked about in the phishing section, they use similar tactics to trick people. Plus if you’re using WordPress and still need some help with SEO, you can download SEO plugins. though this one was harder to spot than the first, the next one was a little harder.
Huh, this Domain Name Looks a Little Weird
Domain name scams are a lot more common among web developers. Usually, you need a domain name to start and post a website so people can see it. To get a domain name, you need to buy one online. Simple, right? Well, not quite, they’re are scams on the domain market as well. Domain name scammers will usually use fake or expired domain names, attempt to pass them off as real domain names, and sell them for astronomical prices!
Sadly, these are some of the hard ones to catch and people can lose a lot of money to these types of scams. But that doesn’t mean that they’re impossible to find. there are a few clues to finding fake or expired domain names. So please pay attention if you’re trying to make a website.
Let’s look at this image and see what we can find. At the top of the email, we can see that the email address is not for domain name services, but for a newsletter. This is a big red flag when it comes to stuff like this. Hackers and scammers use alternative accounts to hide their identities or use them as a countermeasure in case they get caught. Then there are the dates, notice how the expiration date is 7/31/2018 but the date that they’re sending it is 7/23/2018. Not to mention the month for the registration period is of. The chary on top of this is the fact that it says “SEO Service Registration” instead of “Domain Name Registration.”
These types of scams are a lot harder to spot since they hide their scam behind hundreds of words and text. But luckily if you take the time to read before you click, you can spot them fairly easily and not waste a lot of money.
I’m sure it’s Fine!
Deceptive hosting offers are similar to domain name scams. The only difference is that they’ll try to sell you an illegal, or non-function website. There’s not much to write home about these scams since they are very similar to domain name scams. If you can spot that scam, then you can spot this one. Be more careful, since this one can get you into serious trouble.
Conclusion
Like I said at the beginning, scams are way more common these days than they’ve ever been. Website developers can sometimes be the most susceptible to these scams, so it’s good to know how to avoid them in the future. I really hope you learned something. And remember, if you see an email about a free server to host your website on, DON’T click it.
