How LinkedIn is used to commit internet crimes

If you are receiving an excessive amount of connection requests on LinkedIn from people you do not know, be careful not to provide them with any personal or financial information. Such requests could be part of phishing campaigns, which are among the most prevalent methods of obtaining someone’s passwords and personal data.

In one such campaign, hackers created several fraudulent LinkedIn accounts by pretending to be corporate headhunters attempting to entice working professionals in industries such as telecommunications and government agencies. They then convinced their victims to provide their business emails. Once they were in possession of the business emails, the hackers gained access to the desired targets, the CEOs and higher management.

Upon successful completion of a phishing campaign, the hackers can use the stolen data to repeat the process. By accessing important data, including titles and emails, they acquire a mechanism by which they can assume the identity of high-level executives within the company. The hackers may then send emails to employees, who are compelled to transfer funds at the request of the phony executive to the hacker’s account.

Or, a hacker could pretend to be a supplier to the business, and send a vendor email that can be misconstrued as part of normal communication. Only when the employee tries to verify the transaction is the phishing campaign discovered.

Be wary of scammers who create false identities or assume the identity of a real person or company. If you believe to have been a victim of identity theft or other internet crimes, or if you were wrongly accused of having committed internet crimes, such as phishing or identity theft, contact the criminal defense attorneys at the Brill Legal Group, P.C.