Twitter scams

Phishing scams targeting brand managers and influencers who are hoping to secure a blue “verified” badge. Criminals are placing ads to catch the eyes of these individuals, and then linking to phishing sites that claim to offer account verification. Once on the site, which looks legitimate with Twitter’s color scheme and wording, the person enters a credit card number and their Twitter credentials. Once they submit, their login credentials are now in the hands of the scammer.

Cryptocurrency scams. The rise of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and more, has given cybercriminals a new target. In a new Twitter scheme, scammers have begun impersonating tech leaders like Elon Musk, John McAfee, and Ethereum co-founder, Vitalik Buterin. 

All types of bot scams. On Twitter, bots are fake accounts (with profile pictures of real people) that can follow a script if you send them direct messages. These bots can take all different forms and may offer you some sort of “free pass” or other gifts. Like many of the scams, you’re directed to a fraudulent site where you’re prompted to enter your credit card and other info.

Pay-for-follower bots boast the ability to get someone thousands of Twitter followers for a fee. Outside of using Twitter’s advertising platform to run your own campaigns, paying for followers is a bad idea. If you get caught using one of these services, you could be banned from Twitter for helping to distribute spam.

Money-Based Schemes. Fraudsters try to entice you with opportunities to make money from home by tweeting about other people’s products. You will be asked to pay a small sign-up fee to get a “Twitter Cash Starter Kit,”.  Once you’ve paid for the CD, fraudsters now have your credit card number, and they can just keep charging that card each month.

Romance Bot Scams. Either a fraudster or a bot that mimics a human being will interact with you. In most cases, you have tweeted a picture of a scantily clad woman. The image often contains an embedded message that asked for you to message the person.  If you decide to chat, the bot follows a script and may offer access to fraudulent websites. Upon visiting these sites, you will be prompted to enter in your contact information and credit card details. Handing over your data could ultimately leave users vulnerable to identity theft and credit card fraud.

Pay-follower-scams.  There are profiles that are dedicated to delivering thousands of Twitter followers for a fee. Some services claim that they can do this by identifying other Twitter accounts that automatically follow back. Others state they provide followers based upon interests that are shared by the purchaser. Regardless of whether they have those capabilities, however, most pay-for-follower providers are identical to people who sell email addresses to advertisers.  If you engage with one of these services, you could be accused of helping to distribute spam on the networking platform, which could result in Twitter banning you from its site altogether.