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Phishing scams aren’t strangers to most of the people that use the internet regularly. While many phishing scams focus on stealing your financials, many popular streaming services such as Netflix have also become targets of scammers over the years.

With the holiday season just around the corner and plenty of new, exciting, and wonderful stuff available on Netflix – here are a few phishing scams that you’ll want to keep an eye on.


Phishing Bait

Almost all of the major streaming services offer various subscription plans. Usually, these subscription plans can be acquired by making a payment with a credit card. But, of course, we all know that there is a high risk of phishing whenever credit card details are involved.

Whether you are a new or a seasoned member, there are different types of phishing baits. Let’s take a look at them.


Fake Sign-up Page

To register to any video-on-demand streaming service, you’d need to provide a valid email address and payment details (Credit Card or PayPal). Unfortunately, cybercriminals have managed to create fake sign-up pages that can easily lure you into providing that sensitive information about yourself.

Just look at the fake sign-up page in the below screenshot. Are you able to pinpoint the phishing signs?

fake-sign-up-page-netflix

Image Source: Kaspersky 


Refresh Data

Cybercriminals may email you and threaten to disable your subscription if you do not update or confirm your payment details. So don’t be in a hurry.

update-subscrtpion-pricing-details

Image Source: Kaspersky 

After you have clicked on the link, it will redirect you to the payment confirmation page. While many phishing attempts include several mistakes, such as using the word “customer” instead of the user’s actual name, few examples look completely authentic.

For example, the below example has almost zero mistakes, and users can easily take the scammer bait.

fake-details-update-page

Image Source: Kaspersky 


Unofficial Premiere

Cybercriminals lure several users that don’t have a subscription by giving them a chance to watch their favorite show or movie on unofficial, pirated, fake website. They usually offer a short clip of the show or movie as a teaser and ask the users to purchase their website’s subscription.

Once the users enter their payment details and other information, it goes straight to the scammers, and you’ll never get the access you were promised.

unofficial-website-scams

Image Source: Kaspersky 


Stolen Account Details

Your streaming service account details are also a vital target for cybercriminals. These details can easily be sold on the dark web.

You could wake up one day and find your account hijacked by someone else. In addition, since Netflix’s subscription supports multiple screens simultaneously, you could find yourself waiting for someone else to finish streaming before you could do.

Also, many people use the same password for various online accounts. So if your Netflix password is compromised, it is a serious threat for the other accounts that also work with the same password.


Buying A Subscription For Yourself

By following the security tips mentioned below, you can protect your data online and everywhere else as well.

  • Do not click on the links available in the emails. Instead, approach the official service provider via their website or application.
  • Do not trust any website that promises to show you any movie or TV series before its official release/premiere.
  • Always pay attention to indicators that alert phishing emails.
  • Always use different passwords for various online accounts. If possible, developed a habit of using password manager.
  • Try using a reliable security solution such as virtual private networks that can easily identify malicious content and phishing websites.