Scams

Unfortunately, it may be a few years until Spencer Pratt begins his war on cybercrime, so until then, we'll have to rely on this Norton study — that ranks the 10 worst US cities for cyber security — to keep our Internet safe. Cybercrime costs Americans $560 million dollars a year (mostly from fraudulent online purchases), and according to Norton's latest figures, Seattle tops the list as the most vulnerable city for cybercrime. The results were tallied using stats like access to available hotspots, online shopping figures, potential cyberattacks, and malware infections. Seattlites — watch out!

To see the full list of the 10 worst cities in the country, and to get some tips on maintaining a healthy online presence, just read more

I've already told you how to avoid getting hacked on Twitter, but there's a new Facebook scam out there that's not only hacking into your accounts, it's also downloading a virus onto your computer. If you receive an email with the following message, beware — it's a scam:

Because of the measures taken to provide safety to our clients, your password has been changed. You can find your new password in the attached document.

Sneaky little scammers, right? Whatever you do, don't download the attachment! This one could fool you because the email is coming from help@facebook.com, but trust me, it's not from the Facebook team. Facebook will never send you an email with an attachment or ask you to reset your password anywhere off of the site. Pass the warning around to your friends, and if you do end up getting hacked, head to the Facebook help page to see what to do next.

With many friends and family having walked down the aisle, I can tell you what a zoo bridal expos are. It's where businesses and brides-to-be converge to get ideas and hire vendors for their big day. It usually costs to get in (I've seen entry fees range from $10 to $75), but once you're in, it's a cake sampling, music blaring, fashion show bonanza. Most anyone can put on these types of events with the proper venue, license, and workable marketing campaign, but unfortunately, not everyone marks those first two points off their checklist before collecting entry fees.

A recent web scam has targeted these excited brides and has swindled more than $100,000 out of attendees and vendors alike, without even having an actual bridal expo to attend. The scammers associated themselves with a legit Boston community website, set up a fake Twitter account, then watched the entry fees roll in via PayPal. I think I'll spare you the lecture about getting scammed on Twitter (yet again), but this serves as a good lesson as to how savvy online scammers are. If you can't find any information about an event other than a spammy-looking Twitter feed, then use caution when shelling out your hard-earned cash. Do some research into the show! Bridal expos will have a website featuring the vendors that will be showcased there in order to promote the event. Have you ever been scammed like this?

Twitter was hit with another phishing attack this week. Just last night in fact, I got this message in my Twitter DM inbox. It's from a person I know, so I clicked on the link only to be brought to a Twitter-like login screen. I knew I was already logged in so I quickly clicked away and notified my friend that she had been hacked. Earlier this week Twitter was hit with a similar phishing scam, which after gaining your login deets, sent out mass messages about herbal Viagra. I'm sure your friends would have loved that!

If I had actually "logged in" again, my Twitter account would have been taken over by hackers (most likely hacking "bots"), then used to send out the same message to all of my followers. Spam messages could then be sent out in epic proportions. Don't get scammed by these (or any) hackers! Find out how to keep your accounts safe on Twitter, and on any other website, with a few easy tips when you read more