Cyber tips from the ISC2 CUE Student Chapter
October is Cybersecurity Awareness month, and it’s a great time to introduce the newest club at Concordia University of Edmonton (CUE), the ISC2 CUE Student Chapter.
For those not familiar with ISC2, the International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium is a training and certification body that offers certifications to cybersecurity professionals like our Information Systems Assurance Management (MISAM) and Information Systems Security Management (MISSM) graduate students. Members must also follow a code of ethics and the following canons: protect society, the common good, necessary public trust and confidence, and the infrastructure.
To kick off this article series, ISC2 club president Brechin Piper shares common scams that center around buying and selling items on online marketplaces like Facebook Marketplace and Kijiji. The same scam tactics are also used in rental scams and fake job postings.
Deposit/advance payment scams
When buying an item on an online marketplace, you may see some great items at very low prices. This could be a couch, an appliance, or a textbook. When you message the seller, they may reply that the item is so popular they’re being overwhelmed with messages. To show that you’re a serious buyer, the seller demands a deposit be sent to them to hold the item so you can come look at it. This is a common scam, where the scammer is hoping to get deposits from multiple people. Often the account being used is fake, or a compromised account from someone else.
These same tactics are used for rental scams, where the landlord is very busy and will only show you the unit after receiving a deposit. Do not send “deposits” to sellers you haven’t met. When buying a used vehicle, a deposit may be part of the transaction, but it’s never the first thing that a seller should ask for. You may see advertisements for a personal assistant or admin assistant on these marketplaces or job boards as well. If the employer is asking you to pay money for a background check service, or the first tasks are to transfer money from one account to another, or purchase gift certificates, this is another common scam.
When selling items, normally larger or slightly more expensive items like a couch, you will often get very long messages from “interested buyers” who are currently travelling, or moving, and can’t physically come to get the item. However, they’ve engaged a moving service to come get the item and will send you a picture of a cheque, or an e-transfer for the cost of the item, PLUS the cost of the movers. All you have to do is accept the payment, then send the moving fees to the company. This may seem legitimate, after all, once the cheque or e-transfer has been processed and the money shows in my account, it can’t be taken back, right? Unfortunately, that is not the case!
The scammer will write a bad or stolen cheque that will later bounce. Many banks in Canada will place the funds in your account while finalizing the transaction, this may take several days before the bank realizes the cheque is fraudulent. In the case of an e-transfer, the transaction is normally not reversible, unless the transfer came from a compromised account. In several days, someone will report fraudulent transactions to their bank, and the transfers will be reversed, leaving you out the money, and also out the money you sent to the “moving service.” When you call your bank, you may find that they offer little help, as you knowingly sent the e-transfer to the moving service.
What to do if you’re scammed
What can you do if you think you’re being scammed? Report scams to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre and be scam aware. The Anti-Fraud Centre has a list of common scams and how they work. If in doubt, take a breath, hangup, reach out to a friend or check the Anti-Fraud Centre site for more information. On the very unlikely chance that the call was legitimate, you can easily call any legitimate organization back via the number posted on their website. Never call the number of a scammer back, or call a different number they’ve given you over the phone, via email, or text.
The ISC2 club is open to undergrad and graduate students from any major, if you’d like to join or have any questions, please contact the club president Brechin Piper at bpiper1@student.concordia.ab.ca.