Last-minute online Christmas shoppers are being warned to
take extra care when receiving email offers that sound
tempting.
Symantec expert Fred Russo said that with Christmas looming,
Symantec Security Response had observed spammers hard at work
sending out Christmas-related spam, including gift shopping
offers, greeting cards, courier services and more.
Mr Russo said that while Chinese spammers were relatively
less active at this time of the year, the increasing
popularity of the Christmas holiday among the younger Chinese
generation had also generated a wave of Chinese Christmas
spam.
One of the most popular was: Subject [details removed]
hundreds of creative T-shirt style for Christmas gift! Don't
worry about picking up a sweet gift! Only costs 333 dollars.
Symantec recommended using directions provided by mail
administrators to report spam, he said.
Deleting all spam was also recommended along with avoiding
clicking on suspicious links in email or IM messages as those
might connect users to spoofed web sites.
"Type web addresses directly into the browser rather than
relying on links within your messages.
"Always be sure that your operating system is up-to-date with
the latest updates and employ a comprehensive security
suite," Mr Russo said.
Spam alert
Subject: Merry Christmas
Subject: Letters from Santa Claus to your child!
Subject: Delight a child with a personalised letter from
Santa
Subject: May the joy and warmth of Christmas fill your
home with happiness
Subject: Personalised Christmas gifts for everyone on
your list
Subject: Surprise your child with a gift delivered
straight from the North Pole
Subject: Photo Christmas Cards - Fast Shipping
Subject: Christmas shopping made easy
Subject: Christmas e-Card from Online Banking Team
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