How to avoid internet scam

A lot of people say they have experienced financial fraud – and many feel the problem is getting worse in the country as number of internet users increases.

Eight out of 10 people said they had been targeted by fraudsters through a dodgy email, phone call, text or online message, experts told Daily Trust.

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Email scams are the most common form of attack, they said.

But attempts to extract money from consumers by phone and text are also being used extensively, according to experts.

Ibiolu Alakija, a cybersecurity expert said large numbers of people fall victims because they check their bank accounts using a public wi-fi system.

Around one-in-five also allows cards to be taken out of sight when paying for something, Alakija said.

He said a research, which was carried out by Empathy across a nationally representative sample of 1,013 adults, also found that almost half of adults know someone who had been affected by fraud.

More than half of people surveyed said they felt more vulnerable to fraud now than they did two years ago.

He said: “Generally speaking, Nigerians are not pretty savvy when it comes to prevention.

“People carelessly check their online banking on public wi-fi, and nearly one-in-five allows vendors to take their card out of sight for payment.

“This tells us we need to educate people on the simple everyday actions they might take unconsciously that can leave them vulnerable to fraud.”

He said the top three cited behaviours that could be taken to avoid a scam are: avoiding clicking on links on emails if you were not expecting to receive an email from the sender; paying heed to your instincts; and resisting opening or downloading an attachment in an email from someone you do not know.