WARNING: Amazon phishing e-mail

Ruth

I've just seen a reference to the fraudsters starting to use fake Amazon e-mails as a way to steal bank details (and hence money) - please be aware of this risk!

http://www.cashquestions.com/forum/showthread.php?p=21900

Regards

Ruth

Labasheedy

thanks Ruth, It's a clever one

greenwich

Labasheedy wrote:

thanks Ruth, It's a clever one

Very clever. I clicked on the fake Amazon link just to see what it does. I was presented with what looks like the normal Amazon login page. I entered some totally made-up login information and pressed the "sign in via our secure server" button. It didn't go through a secure connection (https), just the normal one (http). Instead of rejecting my invalid login, it just put up a page asking for my credit card details and - wait for it- my PIN!

I then pressed one of the fake Amazon links on the page and to my amazement it came back with my name, just like Amazon do when I go to their site, and showed recommendations for books similar to ones I have bought from the real Amazon. Obviously it's read the cookie that the real Amazon stores on my PC. I pressed the "Add to cart" button for a book and it put the book in my shopping cart. Wow. These guys have made a complete fake Amazon website. I guess the difference is that they don't actually send you any books for your money.

The Chinese are obviously so much better at this than the Nigerians! :eek:

Ruth

No, what they've done is what phishers commonly done - all the links on the site are to the genuine Amazon site, and that's how it knows your name etc. It's the genuine Amazon site reading the cookie, not the false site. The links all correctly begin https://www.amazon.com/ etc.

And the site's just as likely to be run by Nigerians as Chinese - it's just that they've hosted it in China because the Chinese are (presumably) pretty useless at closing down scam sites.