Got hit with a fake "security alert" popup on my phone this morning

I was browsing a recipe site on my Android and suddenly got a full screen warning saying my phone was infected with 5 viruses. I knew better than to call the number they listed, but I panicked and almost clicked 'scan now.' Has anyone else seen these bogus alerts popping up more lately?

2 comments

2 Comments

ninaw881mo ago

Have you noticed how these scams have gotten way more aggressive lately? I saw a similar thing last week on a news site, but it was a fake security alert for my computer instead. It's like every other ad on some sites is designed to trick you into clicking, whether it's a fake virus warning or a "you won a prize" pop up. The scammers know we're all paranoid about our devices, so they're cranking up the pressure to get us to slip up. The real kicker is that even knowing about these tricks, I still almost fell for one yesterday when I was distracted cooking dinner. What's the next thing they're gonna try to fake to scare us?

felixb251mo ago

Honestly I gotta disagree a little bit. Most of the ads on regular sites are just annoying but not really dangerous if you use adblock and keep your browser updated. The real scary stuff is when they start texting you or emailing you pretending to be your bank or the government. That's way harder to spot than some popup on a news site.