Gmail users given urgent ‘spot check’ warning in face of two ‘devastating’ scams that steal passwords & raid accounts

GOOGLE has told Gmail users to conduct an important “spot check” to avoid falling victim to a sophisticated new wave of scams.

It has never been easier to fall victim to phishing – scams that target victims through emails, text messages or calls.

Cyber criminals are now employing the extra, smarter, hand of artificial intelligence (AI) to steal personal information and hijack accounts.

Gmail users were last week given a red alert over a “devastating” new scam that uses AI to create convincing voice or video messages to defraud victims.

“These sophisticated tactics can result in devastating financial losses, reputational damage, and compromise of sensitive data,” FBI Special Agent in Charge, Robert Tripp, said at the time.

More than 1.8billion people worldwide use Gmail, making it the most popular email platform globally.

The popularity of the platform is what makes it such a high-profile target for scammers.

Just days ago, cybersecurity researchers at SlashNet exposed a new phishing attack that tricks Gmail users with fake login pages.

Cyber crooks were found to be sending dodgy links to email users that would redirect them to a fake login page.

These fake webpages are layered over the legitimate login page – making it almost impossible to distinguish the real from the fake.

The new phishing kit, which is currently being sold on the Dark Web, can even bypass two-factor authentication (2FA), which is used to secure accounts.

But both scams, no matter how sophisticated, can be avoided by following Google’s four “golden rules”.

In a blog post, Google has urged people to do a “spot check”.

This means double-checking the details of an email, making sure what it’s saying makes sense and validating the email address of the sender.

If you don’t recognise the address of the sender, then ignore the email and do not click any links in the email.

Google also told people to take a slow and measured approach to emails that use terms like “urgent, immediate, deactivate, unauthorised, etc”.

Scams, like the AI voice memo attack, can also be avoided if people are more sceptical of emails designed to create a sense of urgency.

Google added: “Take time to ask questions and think it through.”

The tech giant reminded users that no “reputable person or agency” will ever demand payment or your personal information on the spot.

The company also actively encourages people to mark any emails they deem suspicious as spam.