Ever received a parcel notification that seemed a bit off? 📦

HMN@discuss.tchncs.de to Technology@lemmy.world – 62 points –

Would you pick up on this if you were in a hurry and happen to be expecting a package? (imagine it's in English 😅) What immediately catches your eye?

25

Knowing I had to look out for something spotting the IPS was easy. Don't know if it would have been as obvious without knowing something is wrong. But I receive so many fake parcel emails (at least at one of my email addresses) that checking the website/app rather than klicking a link is the default option. And I usually add the email adress of the legitimate shops to my contacts so I can easily filter out emails from new e-mail addresses and ignore them.

ips is a real parcel service -edit: removed link-

But not with the ups looks. Besides this ips handles ups parcels. I can understand why people would fall for this… (And now I started googling)

Edit: https://www.google.com/search?q=www.ipsparcel.com+review

I’ve been bamboozled.

I’ve been getting a lot of “your package has arrived at _____, could not be delivered to address. Click here to speak to representative” or something along those lines. I’m not sure what the ultimate goal is, though, you’re gonna get my routing number and try to redirect my package or some shit?

I think the goal of most of those is to convince you to pay "customs duties" or other "fees."

Well, we all know the IPS logo looks nothing like that.

https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/kingofqueens/images/9/94/1dc32b338e42b4d81b2c6843ac2107bd.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20180514194157

I wonder if putting this logo would be more or less successful than making it look like the UPS logo. I can see people assuming there must be an international branch of UPS or something though from the logo looking like UPS's though. Which might convey legitimacy to them instead of how we see it.

I mean unfortunately taking everything with a grain of salt is kinda how most tech adept people are I think

Is this some kind of con research psyop? Sure seems like it. "what things do you notice that tell you it's fake?".

I was expecting a package and an SMS "sorry we missed you" scam caught me off guard.
Luckily the 2nd field in the form was date of birth, which was an immediate red flag.
If it was an age restricted delivery (alcohol, chemicals, kitchen knives or something) I might have gone further.

I am a cynic, so yes, I even manually read urls before clicking but it seems I am the weird one.

That isn't weird. This should be default behavior for everyone. If it was fewer people would get caught by scams. I also look at the sender's email. All the ones I've ever received have come from domains not affiliated with the company they purport to represent. I've taught all my non-security savvy friends to do this, too.

Actually, i do too. When i get emails i expand to see the domain the message comes from and ProtonMail is set to ask me if i want to visit the full printed url before it allows the link to open. I have to click an okay button

It was shortened so wasn't immediately obvious, though not from a common URL shortening service - not that that matters too much. But I'm the same, better to be suspicious first.

I click all URLs for fun. They usually take you to those shitty survey sites. Then I just exit them. The fake links can't do anything unless you let them.

Browsers do have exploits from time to time. Clicking suspicious URLs can be dangerous.

I've seen a US Postal Service spam that would almost fool me. The URL is very close to a real one and when you go to the page (I didn't do it but my coworker did), the page is a very good copy of the real site including the same loading animation and everything.

No legal info. At least they had to provide their full company name, address amd comtact. It's also pretty likely, that they add their terms and conditions and your right of withdrawal.