This is Why We are Irrational In Times Like These

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Though we, as humans, are supposed to be pretty smart, we do a lot of things that might not seem rational.

For example, we do things like text and drive, we don’t get flu shots that can stop us from getting sick, and we hoard things like toilet paper…Dan Ariely, a professor from Duke University, has some reasons for this.

Ariely has released a book called “Predictable Irrational,” and it takes a look at why we do these irrational things…especially in a time of crisis. One of the most mind-boggling things is why we have all become such toilet paper hoarders and why, when we see empty shelves, we start to panic.

According to Ariely, when we are in these situations, you are saying to yourself “This must be something I need to get very quickly and let me get a lot of it so I don’t run out.” But, in general, our responses to things like this are flawed.

On top of this, we don’t do a good job at thinking ahead. Ariely says, “We don’t pay much attention to things that will happen in the future, even if the future is two weeks from now.” He also says that we “don’t pay attention to things that are invisible like viruses.”

All of this is compounded even more as COVID-19 started to spread, and this led to a slow government response and the population’s collective apathy to the threat. Another thing that compounds it is that we, at our core, are also pretty selfish.

“We do what is selfishly good for us and not what’s good for other people,” Ariely says. This means that people who should be staying home because they are sick, go out anyway, and then they contaminate others. This is a normal impulse to defy the stay-at-home orders that many of us are under. And wearing a mask is NOT a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of caring for others than yourself.

Ariely says, “What’s interesting about public goods problems is, as long as everybody participates, everybody gets a lot of benefits, and when people start defecting or betraying the public good, lots of bad things happen. And in a situation like a pandemic, it’s enough that a small percentage of people don’t adhere to the rules and they can hurt everybody.”

Now, we also have the issue of some government officials and health experts being at odds with themselves. President Trump is pushing governors to open their states back up quickly, while public health experts are warning that doing this could quickly cause a huge uptick in cases.

What does Ariely say about this? He says, “The sad reality is that we’ve always had a tradeoff between money and saving lives. This is not something new.”

He also adds that the best thing we can do right now is make the best of our quarantine:

“It’s an opportunity to start new habits, new routines like exercise, eat better, spend time with your family,” he says. “It’s also an opportunity to start worse habits, like not exercising, overeating and developing addiction to social media and the news.”

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

Protecting Your Company and Yourself from COVID-19 Hackers

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Many people are asking how they can not only protect themselves, but also their organizations, from all of these COVID-19 hacks that are currently popping up.

As with any other phishing scam, vigilance is extremely important. We are certainly going to have to keep on our toes for months, or even years, as this fallout from the pandemic could be around for a long time.

You have to be suspicious of each and every unsolicited email, phone call, or text, especially if someone is looking for account or contact details, or they ask to share personal information. If you feel like information seekers are asking for too much, you should vet the email, dig deeper, do some web searches, and make sure its legitimate.

Don’t use any links or phone numbers within the email of based on the call until you do this. If you get a recorded message, make sure you don’t press any button when asked. If you do, you may be giving them some type of approval and you end up being a victim.

  • In response to ransomware, you should make sure that you are totally backing up your data on all of your devices.
  • For any online account you have, set up or turn on two-factor or multi-factor authentication when you can. This, at least, makes those accounts less likely to be breached, even if someone does get ahold of some of your information.

You might think this is a pain right now, but it definitely won’t be a pain if your information is breached and you start to lose money.

There are many organizations that are being forced to give their employees access to their networks from home…and in most cases, they never planned for that. This working from home increases the criminals attack surface. So, the network is probably more vulnerable, and in some cases, security policies and processes are even being bypassed to ensure all employees have access to it. This comes at a big risk, and with every employee who has access to the company network, there is an opportunity for a hacker to get inside.

Most cybercriminals who go for this type of hack want to get access to this so they can get sensitive information and turn it into cash. Other hackers want to go big time, and they will use the credentials that they are hacking to use in attacks like “password stuffing/spraying,” to access multiple critical user accounts. With a larger “attack surface”, these companies are definitely at risk and because of staff working from all over the place, any attempt to break into the network could go unnoticed until it is too late.

Corporate cybersecurity and IT teams are working hard, but they, too, are generally working from home. With even more workload and more remote information to go over, this also means that they don’t have the time to pay as close attention as they should. This makes things even more dangerous, so keep your eyes open.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.

Beware of these Pandemic Phishing Scams

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These days, even though we are all, for the most part, stuck at home, trying to be safe from COVID-19, that doesn’t mean that we are safe from cybercrime. Cybercriminals continue to target victims, even in this environment, and many of these scams are related to COVID-19. This is pretty common when something like a crisis comes down, so you have to remain vigilant as you go through your daily life. Here are some of the things you should be looking for and being aware of:

phishing scamRelief Fund Scams

As we look towards our government officials for help, they have been sending out money to people who have lost their jobs or become impacted financially by the COVID-19 crisis. Criminals have started to create phishing scams that look identical to the correspondence that might come from the government. They do this to trick people into revealing their personal information. Currently, if you are in the UK, Australia, or the US, you are probably being targeted.

Infection Maps that are Malicious

Cybercriminals are also taking advantage of the public’s interest in COVID-19 infection maps. Organizations like Johns Hopkins are creating these maps, but cybercriminals are following close behind and releasing their own. All they have to do is set up their own websites, and then stick malware in them. They can do this for little to no money, and then they can make a huge profit thanks to ID theft and other dastardly deeds.

Impersonating Official Health Organizations

You also need to keep an eye out for cybercriminals who are impersonating official health organizations, including WHO – the World Health Organization, or the CDC – Centers for Disease Control. They are doing this by designing a number of different phishing scams. These started all the way back in February, and they are continuing to be sent. The criminals are setting up a sense of urgency, so that people are more apt to give up their information.

Scams with COVID-19 Testing Kits

There is also a lot of interest in COVID-19 testing kits, and as you might imagine…the bad guys are targeting these people, too. Not only are these scams spreading via email, according to the FCC, Federal Communications Commission, but also with robocalls, text smishing, and more. The FCC has even announced that it has found a big range of robocall scams that are associated with coronavirus, including things like debt consolidation, work at home opportunities, and even student loan repayment plans. There are also specific scams that are targeting small businesses.

Medical Supply Scams

Finally, we have medical supply scams. These are similar to the testing kit scams but the cybercriminals are using these medical supplies, like masks and gloves, as a lure to get people to give them money. There are more and more of these websites popping up with huge discounts on medical supplies. Many of these sites are offering limited-time sales and want Bitcoin for payment, which is a big sign that you could be getting scammed.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program and the home security expert for Porch.com

Cybercriminals are Stealing from you by Using these COVID-19 Scams

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It is estimated that COVID-19 fraud has cost Americans more than $13 million, and it is rising. This comes from the US government.

The US Federal Trade Commission has added up the costs of all of these scams. They are looking from those that started from the 1st of January to the current week. What are these numbers made of? Mostly vacation and travel scams, as these have added up to $4.7 million lost. Online shopping scams are also out there, but they have only added up to $1.4 million.

The global spread of coronavirus has forced people to change the way they live, work, and even socialize. This is going to be the case for some time to come, and because of this, the cybercriminals have jumped onto the bandwagon, and they know…if they are lucky…this could be a lucrative thing for them.

These COVID-19 scams are definitely playing on the fears of the general public, and the goal of these cyber criminals is to get their targets to give them their personal information. Then, the bad guys use this information to commit fraud. In other words, they take money directly out of the hands of the people who need it the most.

What are the Tactics that People are Using to Hack Their Victims

There are a number of COVID-19 tactics that are being used to trick people into giving away their personal information, and in some cases, their hard-earned money.

Most of the tactics are combining phishing texts and emails with fake sites. Here are some of the things that are commonly found in a number of different languages:

  • Malware that is sent by “official” feeds, which are not really official. These include things like real time COVID-19 maps, which are actually meant to spread malware.
  • Messages that are offering an iPhone 11…for free…to help pass the time at home.
  • Messages offering payday loans to help people who are having problems with money.
  • Scams advertising products that are supposedly “cures” for COVID-19.
  • Coronavirus-themed domain names that seem to offer official information about the virus, but instead, simply spread viruses.
  • Emails from sources that show they are from WHO, the CDC, or even local governments.
  • Emails that ask for donations for COVID-19 research
  • Emails that look like they are coming from the government that have fake links allowing you to claim a tax refund.
  • People from the UK have reported getting fake emails saying they are from the BBC and the person’s TV license is expired. Then, they are asked to go to a website and update their details.
  • Phone calls are coming that are recorded and telling people that their broadband access will be cut off within 24 hours thanks to “illegal activity,” and the user must “press 1” to speak with a person to fix it. Once you are connected, they do all they can to get personal information from you.
  • Emails from people claiming to be “company officials,” that contain and attachment with the names of people within the organization that have tested positive for COVID-19.

No person nor industry is immune to this, so keep your eyes open and stay safe.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program and the home security expert for Porch.com