Browser Toolbars Help Catch Scams

February 10th, 2006

Paypal and eBay phishing scams have been on the rise recently.

This type of crime usually consists of two main components: a branded email message that looks like it comes from the company (in most cases eBay or Paypal) and a web based form used to steal information. The email message contains a link to the Web based form, and in some cases a form is embedded in the actual email message.

A news brief in Practical eCommerce pointed me towards some resources that might help increase your security as you read email and browse. Several companies have released toolbar plugins for Internet Explorer that claim to block these scams.

The toolbars are:

Netcraft Anit-Phishing Toolbar
GeoTrust TrustWatch Anti-Fraud Toolbar: According to the Register though, GeoTrust has had some accuracy problems.
Microsoft Anti-Phishing Toolbar

Some excellent information on phishing and pharming can be found at the Anti-Phishing Working Group Web site. Also, Core Compenence has an excellent page on Anti-Fraud Resources.

Entry Filed under: Internet Marketing, Technology