The Netflix Scam Going Around Australia

Online security is again under the microscope as a new phishing scam impersonating Netflix has been appearing around Australia. In this scam the perpetrators attempt to obtain your sensitive customer data. Here’s what has been reported and what you should be aware of .

Lifehacker Australia have also noted that this scam looks legitimate with official looking  Netflix branding and links that appear to lead to Netflix’s genuine website. 

Variations of the scam uploaded by other users show some emails claiming the scammers could not authorise payment resulting in a suspended or expired membership.

Aussies have been warned by Scamwatch via Twitter, they have warned on the dangers of opening and interacting with this emails.

Scammers are targeting Netflix customers in an email scam claiming your payment info needs to be updated. Don’t click on the link. Go directly to the website to check your account details https://t.co/uTcmlvPrrV

— Scamwatch_gov_au (@Scamwatch_gov) November 4, 2019

This scam has also been reported by many Aussies on Twitter  and also on Reddit. The emails do appear genuine as Netflix’s branding has been replicated well. The email requires receivers to update their payment information due to an issue with their account.

Scamwatch warned people to not click on any links that are provided in these scam emails. Instead if you want to query the email go to Netflix’s official site and check for any problems if you have concerns. 

“Scammers are targeting Netflix customers in an email scam claiming your payment info needs to be updated,” Scamwatch Tweeted. “Don’t click on the link. Go directly to the website to check your account details.”

So do you know what to look out for to identify potential phishing scams? Telltale signs of these phishing email scams include punctuation as well as grammatical errors. Phishing emails can also be spotted as they come from unofficial email addresses and sometimes use outdated or incorrect logo and colour schemes. 

Emails or messages that request you to enter your credit card information or other sensitive information should raise concerns. Should you encounter any of these scenarios it is always best to close the email then go to the official site. Once on the official site you can check to see if the issues mentioned in the email are valid. You can also contact the company’s  support team. 

Should you happen to click  on one of these links, delete the email contact the company via official channels and change your passwords. Also consider enabling two-step authentication wheenever possible. Scamwatch has more advice should you still be unsure what to do.