Take Five to Stop Fraud

Today’s topic is genuine vs FAKE news.

There has been a lot of ‘noise’ in the press and on social media about scams and advice being offered from all sources, some of which appear to be dubious.

Reliable sources of information are: National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), Action Fraud and your regional or force Protect teams.

Genuine or fake news? Speculation or legitimate advice?

Popular video chat and gaming app Houseparty has reportedly had an astronomical uptake in the weeks since coronavirus became a worldwide threat. In just six days it jumped from number 1,143 on Apple’s App Store in New Zealand to first place. (NewsHub).

Some users began to point out that when they delete the app they have to input their password to complete deactivation (unconfirmed). Since this became a hot topic of conversation, a number of (unsubstantiated) reports began surfacing from users that their accounts on other social media platforms (Instagram, Twitter, Spotify and Netflix) were experiencing suspicious logins from unrecognised IP addresses or devices.

In response, the creators of Houseparty have offered $1m reward to unmask those behind the smear campaign. (ZdNet.com).

Want to share the above? STOP and THINK. Is this a real security issue, or is it just fake news?