Adata breach noticeis correspondence mailed by a company to customers that informs them of a cyberattack.
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The problem is that criminals know about these notices.
So they create scams that take advantage of them.
They’re clever and timely scams, especially since data breaches aren’t rare.
They happen almost every day.
Here’s how to distinguish fraudulent data breach notices from the real ones.
How do these data breach scams work?
The scammer may ask you to download software to protect yourself.
Instead, it turns out to be malware that infects your gear.
A legitimate data breach noticewon’task you to download anything.
A scammer may also suggest you “tap on this link to verify your identity.”
But in reality, it’s a phishing tactic to get you to divulge your sensitive information.
A legitimate data breach notice alsowon’tdo this.
You also shouldn’t stay on the phone with a person claiming to be a company representative.
If you discover it’s a scam, you’ll want to report it.
Just check that you’re using the correct number and site, becausescammers even masquerade as the FTC.
If it’s a cybercrime, consider reporting the scam to theFBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.
