As Web scam criminals get better, it?s harder to know who to trust

Are you as sick and tired of this as I am? This past week both my eBay and PayPal accounts were suspended ? at least that?s what my e-mail told me.

I would be pretty worried about all of this if it wasn?t about the tenth time it has happened. These e-mail scams apparently are able to exploit bugs in the Internet Explorer browser that allows certain URL sites, including eBay, to be forged.

I will say the scammers are getting pretty darn good. This stuff looks about as official as you can get. Now I always wonder ? what if eBay or PayPal really does want to contact me. I think they?re going to have to send a live representative to knock on my door ? and even then, I?m not sure I would let him in.

According to one Web site that tracks scams like this, once you?ve received one of these you can expect more fake messages, perhaps with slightly different content.

After all, crooks finally are getting a clue.

Why should they get their hands dirty digging through your garbage when they can simply spam thousands of people, knowing many will quickly send back valuable information in a panic that their eBay account is about to be suspended.

?My God Doris! If I don?t send our credit card number back right away my auction for my Big Mouth Singing Billy Bass is going to die!?

The crooks are using what is called ?phishing? schemes, and eBay is popular bait. By clicking on what you believe is a ?security update? form, you?re actually hooked into sending back everything from your actual eBay user name and password to credit card or Social Security numbers.

Microsoft already has put out a security update to eliminate this browser spoofing, and obviously I need to install it.

But honestly, do you have time to install every security update as soon as you get them? Practically every time I turn on my computer, a pop-up window tells me a new security update from Dell, Microsoft or whoever is ready.

One of our employee?s computers last week had its browser ?hijacked.? This was a new one to me, but nothing surprises me anymore. I mean if you can hijack a jetliner, it can?t be too hard to take over a PC. You don?t even need a box cutter.

In this case, every time he clicked on Internet Explorer, it would open up several more Explorer versions, eventually grinding his computer to a memory-suffering halt.

Other hijacking programs apparently send users off to pornographic Web sites, and the question already has been raised on the Internet if indeed these hijackings could lead to a false accusation of child pornography.

Hijackings of PCs by what is called ?malware? can alter the browser start-up home page and search pages. Imagine someone being able to change your pre-set channels on your car radio? Or suddenly your TV starts going to the Playboy Channel while your kids are watching Saturday cartoons.

There are software programs you can buy, of course, as well as a slew of freeware to capture PC hijackers and prevent more from getting in. Home detention ankle bracelets are not included.
But it looks to me that the scammers always seem one step ahead of the fixers.

It?s certainly making for good business for companies like Boulder?s own Webroot Software, which got into the spyware prevention business early on when everyone else was freaking out about viruses and worms.

Webroot?s Spy Sweeper program, awarded one of our 2004 IQ Awards for innovation, now has more than 2 million users, the company says, with the ability to detect and remove more than 3,500 traces of spyware from computer systems. Webroot says industry experts now think up to 90 percent of all Internet-connected computers might be infected by spyware. No wonder you?ll soon be seeing Webroot?s software sold in Wal-Marts.

The good news is that as fast as the crooks can send their scams out on the Web, consumers just as quickly can post information about the latest ruse. There?s www.fraudbureau.com, the FTC has a top 10 list of ?dot-con? operations and just about every computer magazine or online site has published extensive warnings.

Web scams are pretty much like every other con. If it sounds too good to be true or if anyone is requesting personal information, especially financial data, go straight to the source with a phone call, but make sure you know who you?re talking with.

Do you get the feeling like me that the days of face-to-face personal customer service are about to return?

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