SHOPPERS have been warned about a worrying scam involving a text message posing as Costco.
The sneaky trick, which could leave your banking details vulnerable, appears as a celebratory message, congratulating customers on being chosen to win a “special reward”.
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It will then ask the recipient to answer “a few quick questions” with a time limit of a few minutes.
When customers click the link, they are taken to a phishing site that “often looks identical to the legitimate site,” said scam expert Paul Bischoff. Readers’ Summary.
“Users are then tricked into providing passwords, credit card numbers and other private information,” he explained.
The text scam, which can also appear in the form of a search, is known as ‘smishing’, a type of phishing attack that uses social engineering to obtain someone’s personal information through texts.
And experts warn anyone who receives such a message to delete it immediately and report it as spam.
“The text may say that you are ‘only’ responsible for a small shipping and handling fee to receive your gift,” Monica Eaton, an expert on the financial consequences of scams and data theft, explained to Readers Digest.
“But this is a scam, and you shouldn’t give them your financial details! They will take as much money as they can and will not stop until your account is empty.”
To avoid becoming a victim of smishing, avoid clicking on links and do not provide personal or confidential information to suspicious sources.
It’s something to keep in mind for other scams as well, with Bischoff warning recipients to “Never click on links or attachments in unsolicited messages.”
“Always check the website domain in email addresses and websites and make sure the correct domain comes after the @ sign in an email and before the first slash in a URL,” he said.
Eaton, for its part, emphasized that Costco has no role to play in any of the scams they claim.
Costco “is also a victim of these scams,” she said.
To help shoppers, the company has listed all scams known to target customers.
The list of 27 people includes everything from USPS scams to gift card scams.
The US Sun has reached out to Costco for comment.
Three Common Costco Scams
Exclusive Giveaway Scam: Shoppers may receive a text that says they have been “specially selected” for an “exclusive giveaway,” but they need to click a link to win. Avoid clicking on random links or attachments.
Fraudulent search text: This is also known as smishing, which is a type of phishing attack that uses social engineering to obtain personal information about someone through texts.
Fraudulent satisfaction survey email: A shopper may receive an email asking them to share their satisfaction with Costco, promising a prize at the end.
If you’re not sure whether an email is legitimate, check that the correct domain comes after the @ sign in an email and before the first slash in a URL. Also, never click on links or attachments.
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