A word of caution to those on the LinkedIn community: I was recently contacted via email by someone who says “she” found me on LinkedIn, with a classic 417 scam proposal.
Turns out that I am the only natural heir to millions held in an European bank account, which I have to urgently claim before it defaults to the bank. Upon searching for my benefactor on LinkedIn, I found three profiles, one perfect match and two with names that are very similar. All three profiles record the same senior position at the bank where my fortune lies waiting.
It seems that the scammers are impersonating real, credible individuals in order to convince their targets of their legitimacy.
Look out for the following red flags on profiles:
- no information on a person’s work and education history;
- inappropriate or unlikely posts; and
- multiple profiles for the same or very near names.
To find out more about Insiox’s comprehensive forensic and cyber security service offerings, visit www.insiox.co.za or email info@insiox.co.za