Protect yourself from Olympic phishing scams

Nobody yet knows for certain whether they have been allocated 2012 Olympic event tickets. Until June 24, when confirmations arrive, there remains the risk that some people will have been the victim of cybercrime.

Until this uncertainty and the concern it has created has abated, below are some top tips courtesy of VADition on what do if you are concerned about the risks you may have been exposed to during the Olympic ticket application process.

1. If an ‘Olympics’ related sum has been taken from your account, do not assume that it is bona fide just because it says ‘Olympics Tickets 2012’ or some other official sounding reference. Contact your bank or card provider to query the origin of the transaction.

2. If you receive any correspondence pertaining to be from the Olympics authorities, read it carefully for spelling errors, peculiar language or anything else that doesn’t look quite right. If in any doubt, share the correspondence with the Olympics authorities yourself before accepting that any of the information is true, or following any instructions on it.

3. If you need to access the Olympics ticket website again, do so by entering the full website address manually into your browser window. Do not click any links you have received or used before, as these can be spoofed (i.e. redirect to another address different from the one you see on the page).

4. If your bank or card provider proactively contacts you regarding any specific bank transaction, or about your account in general, remain extremely vigilant to phishing threats and be cautious about disclosing any personal information.

5. Continue to routinely check your bank statements carefully. If your account details have been stolen, it could be some considerable time before the thief decides to take advantage.

6. For more guidance, consider a government endorsed, independent provider of authoritative advice like Get Safe Online. Or consider placing a fraud alert on your credit reports. Your bank should be able to help you do this.