Taking advantage of the attraction of iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max to commit fraud
Security company Kaspersky discovered many impersonating websites, promoting bogus offers related to models of the iPhone 18 Pro series. Pages appear in multiple languages, such as Vietnamese, English, Arabic, and Portuguese.
One of them gives detailed information about the new iPhone, along with a 25% discount. Kaspersky said the page interface is carefully designed like an online store, offering many payment methods, including Bitcoin. There's a page promoting the 18 Pro pre-order program with multiple color and storage options, including colors that aren't on Apple's announced list. The scammer allows buyers to make a deposit to keep the device and pay the rest later, with a 100% refund guarantee if the order is canceled.
Meanwhile, police in many localities warn of scams in the form of messages announcing "winning an iPhone 18 Pro Max". The bad guy lures the recipient of the message to transfer money to pay taxes of more than 8 million VND, or reward fees, shipping fees or requests to access links.
When following the instructions, users may have their money appropriated or their personal information and bank accounts exposed. Authorities advise people not to transfer money, click on strange links or provide passwords or OTP codes to others.
Ms. Olga Altukhova, web content analyst at Kaspersky, said similar scams often appear around the launch of widely popular technology devices.
With this trick, the fraudulent website can catch viewers off guard, leading them to provide personal information and make payments. "Consumer excitement can become an opportunity for cybercriminals to take advantage of, increasing the opportunity to profit from fraudulent activities," Ms. Altukhova said. Purchase data such as full name, phone number, email, address and contact information can also become an input source for cybercriminals to continue to commit fraud, such as identity fraud or psychological manipulation.
Experts recommend that users only buy products through official retail channels, and be wary of "unbelievably attractive" offers or products with information different from the manufacturer's announcement.
iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max were introduced by Apple on September 9, starting to accept orders from September 12 and shipping from September 18. Vietnam is among the first group of more than 60 markets to open new products for sale. Retail systems in Vietnam recorded more than 300,000 new iPhone pre-orders in just one day. Revenue on the first day of opening is estimated to exceed 1,500 billion VND, equivalent to iPhone 14 in 2022, but one and a half times higher than iPhone 15 and iPhone 16.
Trong Dat