AOL subscribers were sent a link to a Web page, where they were asked to enter their name, address, home phone number, and credit card number. This information, which was requested in the name of helping AOL fix its busy-signal problem, was being used by a cyberthief trying to commit credit card fraud.
People tend to be impressed by technology.
Scammers may come at you via e-mail, paper mail, a Web page, or the telephone, but they'll always want information, which can be converted into money. Industry specialists estimate electronic crime is already costing consumers millions of dollars annually. Analysts at the CSI believe cybercrime is growing exponentially. Hustlers and parasites of every imaginable stripe have been with us for centuries, but the hi-tech trappings of electronic media make faking legitimacy easier. Cybercrooks want your money and they're becoming very good at getting it.