Scammers’ back, back again. This time, they’re going after a bunch of people who have a half eaten fruit plastered on their device. In this latest scam, Apple users are being warned not to open a text message sent by “iTunes” requesting for their personal account information.
The scammers are disguising themselves as the Cupertino company’s popular entertainment hub, iTunes, attempting to extract sensitive personal information of the user’s accounts.
When users receive the text message, it seems based on this report, that the sender’s ID will show up as iTunes on their iPhones. The message informs the users that their iTunes account has been frozen because “iTunes” were unable to validate their information.
After that, there is a short link the scammers have so helpfully provided which will allow users to “validate” their account information. According to Express.co.uk, the link contains a major malicious virus — which is unsurprising since we now know it’s a scam.
Either way, Apple users are encouraged not to click on that link should they receive the text message, instead delete it immediately. Apple warns:
The iTunes Store will never ask you to provide personal information or sensitive account information (such as passwords or credit card numbers) via email. Email messages that contain attachments or links to non-Apple websites are from sources other than Apple, although they may appear to be from the iTunes Store. Most often, these attachments are malicious and should not be opened. You should never enter your Apple account information on any non-Apple website.
It is unclear if this scam affects Malaysians, so do let us know in the comments below if you’ve received this text message so that it will serve as a warning to local Apple users.
This has clearly not been the first time scammers have tried to prey on the unsuspecting public, so we do encourage you to give every message you receive some thought before blindly following what the scammers tell you to do.
