Summer is literally just a few weeks away. Many of us are toiling, sweating and sacrificing to get that beach body or get into that dream swimsuit. Your fellow beach companions aren’t the only ones watching. Hackers and cyber criminals are, too.
According to Intel security, 88% of people have clicked on pro-diet or pro-weight loss diet pop-up ads, even though many know what pop-up ads can lead to. ?Of the 15,000 people, nearly a third have purchased a diet product from a pop-up without even researching the business or product. They knew the purchase could even cause malware. And clicking these ads can cause vicious malware. And purchasing from such ads could lead to far worse consequences: id theft, fraud, online robbery. The same way professional con artists on the street are upping the ante, so are cyber con artists. Criminals know what season it is. They know dieting is almost a $65 billion a year industry. They know everyone wants to look good for summer. They know what season it is too. In much of the country, May is when people get summer minded. Weather gets warmer. Bathing suits are on store shelves. Criminals take advantage of this.
I am not here to play ‘blame the victim’. Those who are behind this needs to be caught and brought to justice. Those who are using this to phish and steal need harsh criminal and civil penalties brought against them. But we need to be more vigilant. If a weight loss pop-up ad comes your way, don’t purchase what they’re selling. Don’t even click on it! Hit the ‘x’ off button immediately. If you’re into weight loss products, they’re plenty of respectable companies either online or in person that have products that truly work. Or you can just do what I do: Be satisfied in the skin you’re in. That concept isn’t that radical, is it?