Whether you’ve been on Discord for a while (or not), you would have definitely come across some form of scam in the recent months. While you may think that you aren’t easily phished, well think again! Today, I’ll be sharing some tips on how to avoid getting phished, so read on!
Who may be phished?
LITERALLY ANYBODY AND LITERALLY ANYWHERE! A recent phishing case saw scammers exploiting SMSes to receive bank details from customers. Other phishing cases that are more relevant to our Discord use would be the usual ‘Discord Nitro Gifts’.
Well, sick and tired of falling prey to such phishing scams? Take a read below and test yourself at the end how likely you’d be phished!
What exactly is phishing?
Phishing is an act by malicious (bad) people who attempt to retrieve your personal details, to steal your money, or identity, etc. In the typical Discord Nitro scams that you’ve heard of, scammers send you a message promising a good deal of getting free nitro with a link to click on. However tempted you may be, PLEASE DO NOT CLICK ON IT!
Once the link is clicked, the scammers are able to obtain your Discord account login. Once they are logged in, they are able to forward the same malicious message to your friends and people in your mutual Discord servers. This vicious chain would then continue.
Let’s learn how to spot the signs today and prevent yourself from falling prey to this phishing scam scheme!
6 things to look out for to avoid getting phished:
1) Promise of attractive rewards
In a typical Nitro gift scam, or even a cryptocurrency reward, the promise of such freebies are enticing. These offers are often used to lure you to act immediately upon receiving such messages. The instructions given are usually very straightforward and make it seem easy to claim the gifts, like simply clicking the link provided. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is (a scam!!)
2) Unexpected Direct Messages (DMs)
Who’s that rando who just sent you that message? You’ve never seen them around in your mutual servers, let alone talk to them. Scammers usually test their luck by sending general mass messages to people, in hopes that someone would take the bait and click the link. Be sure not to click on any suspicious links!
3) Dubious and misleading information
To lure you with their free Nitro, scammers attempt to make their message as enticing as possible. This also leads you to believe that the message you’ve received is genuine. Be meticulous and study the information closely so as to ensure that you do not fall prey for their tricks.
Sometimes, DMs may come from people you know or have talked with previously. As a result, you may let your guard down, thinking it might be a genuine gift from them. The biggest telltale sign in their message would be the “Discord Nitro gift link” or misspelling in any of the links sent.
4) Language used
At times, scammers may use words to pressurise you to act quickly. For example, they may tell you that the gift is expiring or that there is a certain time limit to claim your gifts. These scammers are trying to make you panic to trick you into providing your Discord details to them. If you believe it’s truly a scam, be sure to report them to the servers that you are in with them and delete the chat, or even report them if it’s some random person messaging you.
5) Requests for login credentials
Upon clicking the link, you may be redirected to a website that looks like the actual Discord page. Do keep an eye out to ensure you are truly on a Discord page and not on a scam site that looks eerily similar! Once you’ve logged in to the fake site thinking it’s real, the scammers would have gotten a hold of your details! If you do happen to login by mistake, be sure to change your password for your login as soon as you can. Otherwise, be sure to contact support to see if they are able to help you with gaining access to your account as soon as possible.
6) SUSSY LINKS
Last but not least (and also the biggest red flag of all) would be suspicious links being sent. Always beware of suspicious links and feel free to report it to Discord if you receive links from unknown people.
Additionally, be sure to check out this guide from our very own Rebel Penguin Federation’s F6Sixer to take your cybersecurity measures a level higher. Hence, I hope all of you exercise caution and be sure not to get phished!
P.S. There’s a cool quiz here about email scams that you could try your new knowledge on!
Check out past Get Skilled 101 series posts:
Photo credits: https://miro.medium.com/max/1400/0*uPox9VbYkLQUBQ3L.jpg
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