Google Helps Seniors Avoid Scams With This Site

Illustration (Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Google is back at work to clean up online fraud regarding the outbreak of the corona virus or COVID-19 which is currently taking place around the world, through a new website owned by the company.

It is Scamspotter.org, through this site the tech giant is showing people how to identify things like fake health check offers, vaccine offers, or other fake medical information offered by Scammers. A scammer is a person or group of people who cheat to get money in a very sneaky and dirty way through cyberspace and real life.

Developed in partnership with the Cybercrime Support Network, Scamspotter is Google's website for educating people about various scams and helping them avoid them. By providing three points of knowledge such as Slow it down, Spot Check, Stop! Don't send.

Illustration (Photo: Scamspotter.org)

The site also highlights certain patterns of other scams such as cheaters asking their targets to send money or buy gift cards.

Not only that, Scammspotter.org also aims to educate seniors, who are disproportionately losing more money than those who are younger due to this scam. Google urges young people to share information from websites with the elderly in their lives.

"This will require a cross-generational effort. If we learn how to recognize bad actors, we can spend our time focusing on the moments that matter," said a pioneer in internet development, as well as Google vice president Vint Cerf in his official statement. CNET, Friday 29 May.

According to a report from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the United States (US) has lost more than US $ 40 million due to COVID-19-related fraud. The agency also suspects that in the future more than US $ 2 billion will be lost due to fraud across social media platforms this year, related to COVID-19 or vice versa.

Earlier this month, the FTC alerted the public about text message scams linked to contact tracing, a public health method of tracking the spread of the virus. Scammers ask for personal information such as social security numbers, bank accounts or credit card numbers.

Seeing that the number of frauds like this is increasing, it's a good idea to use or get information from official sources such as government websites, local health authorities, and moreover Apple and Google have also allied to create a contact tracking application related to COVID-19 recently.