I’m sure I’m not the only one to have noticed this, but there seems to have been a fair increase in social media shares from people relating to “competitions”.

While social media sites such as Facebook can be great for companies to market (completely legitimate) competitions, there are always people out there who wish to abuse that freedom in the form of scams, or phishing. This is why we can’t have nice things!

The latest little number to attract my attention appears to be in the form of a company claiming to be EasyJet offering 100 lucky participants a flight anywhere in the world with 5* all-inclusive accommodation and $10,000 to spend on all your little hearts desires. There’s just one (hundred) things wrong with this picture. Luckily, your somewhat-friendly neighbourhood Cyber Crime Advisor was there to point out just some of the flaws in this scam.

Remember guys, competitions can be great, but use your head, if something seems too good that it’s almost implausible, do a bit of research beforehand. A 2 minute background search could save you months of headaches and junk mail!

Useful links:

For information about our work to prevent individuals and communities from becoming victims of cyber crime, please visit www.safeinwarwickshire.com/cybercrime

Be Cyber Streetwise is a cross-government campaign, funded by the National Cyber Security Programme. They aim to measurably and significantly improve the online safety behaviour and confidence of consumers and small businesses (SMEs).

Get Safe Online is the UK’s leading source of factual and easy-to-understand information on online safety. Their website offers advice on how you can protect yourself, your computers and devices, and your business against the likes of fraud, identity theft, viruses and other potential online problems.