As Christmas creeps closer, the FBI has their hands full trying to catch cyber criminals.
This season, they are seeing a new kind of scam. Hackers are posting fake coupons on Facebook that advertise that they will save you money at your favorite stores. Special Agent Chris Christopherson says don't be fooled.
"This coupon is one of the things that fraudsters are using this year to try to get you to click into the coupon," he said.
Once you click the bait, it takes you to a bogus website that steals your information. Hackers are posing as your friends and posting these fake coupons all over Facebook.
"So we're seeing this a lot where, again, if you're uncle doesn't typically post on your wall a coupon from JCPenny, it's abnormal behavior so that's something to watch out for," Christopherson said.
The FBI also says scammers are also offering too good to be true deals via phishing e-mails advertising brand name merchandise, quick money making offers, or gift cards as an incentive to purchase a product.
Never provide your personal information to an unknown party or untrusted website.
When purchasing gift cards online, be leery of auction sites selling discounted or bulk offers of gift cards. When purchasing gift cards in the store, examine the protective scratch-off area on the back of the card to see if it has been tampered with.
If you feel you are a victim of an Internet-related crime, you may file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.IC3.gov.
"If it's too good to be true, it probably is," Christopherson said. "So use that intuition that everyone has to say 'Hey, this deal just doesn't seem right.'"
