IKEA, leading furniture and home accessories firm has warned customers about a fake message spreading online that is claiming about “a free voucher as part of their 75th birthday campaign”.
IKEA, leading furniture and home accessories firm has warned customers about a fake message spreading online that is claiming about “a free voucher as part of their 75th birthday campaign”. According to IKEA, they do not have a 75th birthday campaign, as such. The fake message with the link is part of phishing attempt by cybercriminals.The message is spreading through various messaging platforms stating that Ikea is celebrating their 75th birthday by giving away a free voucher of $500, and the message contains a malicious link also. Whatsapp and Facebook are flooded with these messages, and it got spread like a wildfire among the common man, who can easily fall into the trap, considering the sophistication of the attack with a very genuine looking message.When the link is clicked, the customers are taken to a fake website, where customers are asked to answer some questions to get $500 voucher.
Below is the full content of the fake message :“Hey !!, IKEA is giving away a free voucher of $500! To celebrate its 75th birthday, you can get your free Voucher too! Don't miss it, click here to get your free $500 Voucher from IKEA: http://www.ıĸea.com/Voucher enjoy, and thanks me later!.”When looked closely it can be seen that the message contains many spelling and grammatical errors.Ikea Singapore has responded to this issue on their Facebook page saying that:“Dear fans, We've noticed that there is another round of mobile survey promising free IKEA vouchers circulating on the Internet and messaging apps. We'd like to clarify that we are not associated with these activities, and they are not initiated by IKEA. Please protect yourself by not sharing your personal information or clicking on any suspicious links. Do spread the word to your friends, so they are aware.”
At the time of writing this news, the fake website has been taken down. Users are strictly advised not to click suspicious link spreading through social media and not give away any personal details.Thanks to Ikea for responding timely so that the phishing campaign could be put to halt, at least for a temporary period. However, there are all chances for it to come back, may be with a different link, considering the trends of these type of attacks. General recommendations to SecureReading readers is that “Don’t believe on Free Give Aways! There will always be a cost associated with it” In some cases, it could be financial, and in other cases your privacy and safety!
About the Author
[/lgc_column][lgc_column grid="85" tablet_grid="75" mobile_grid="75" last="true" style="background-color: #ffffff ;"]Jawad Ahamed - COO & Editor in Chief-SecureReading. Cyber Security Evangelist & Follower.Although Doctor by profession,now passionately in love with Information Security.Entrepreneur, Speaker & Writer! [/lgc_column]