Customers of telecom companies confirmed receiving messages whose senders impersonated official bodies, including Emirates Post, Etisalat, and Du, to force users to open them, exposing them to fraudulent operations.
A technical expert called for attention to website addresses, as government websites must end with .gov.ae or .ae for companies in the United Arab Emirates, such as “Emirates Post,” whose name fraudulent messages are currently spreading, warning against websites that do not end with those titles.
He called for blocking the sender and deleting the suspicious message, which represents bait or a hunting method for fraudsters.
In detail, Emirates Today monitored messages sent to customers, one of which said: “We are Emirates Post… We cannot deliver your shipment, because the shipment address you provided does not match the postal code. Please update through the following link.”
Another message says: “Emirates Post.. The postman lost your shipment by accident. Please refill your data via the link to re-update.”
A third message said: “We tried to deliver your shipment. Please confirm your information, otherwise the shipment will be returned.”
Another message also stated: “Your shipment address does not include a home number, so it will not be possible to deliver it. Please update the information on the link.” The link included an electronic address that contained a linguistic error. Another message said: “The balance of your reward points from Du (….point) ends today, so it is necessary to enter the link to collect your reward.”
Amira Aziz (an employee) said that she had recently received many messages bearing the name “Emirates Post,” from numbers outside the country, trying to convince her that there was a problem with her parcel.
She said: “I suspected that the whole thing was a scam, so I decided not to open the links sent to me, and I later confirmed that they were fraudulent links.”
Ibrahim Khaled (a doctor) confirmed that his phone detected a number of messages claiming that he had shipments with Emirates Post that were having problems sending them, either because of the address or because the postman could not arrive, but he doubted the links sent with the messages, due to the linguistic errors they contained, such that The word Emirates Post is missing the letter (T) in the word emirates, and other links to unknown sites. After consulting experts and specialists, it was learned that they are sites aimed at stealing bank accounts.
Muhammad Al-Sayed (engineer) said that he had received annoying messages over the past few days, requesting access to certain links.
He continued: “After entering the link, it asked me for data, such as the bank account number. I then realized that it was aiming to steal the bank account, so I decided to immediately exit the site before submitting any data.”
For his part, information technology expert, Abdel Nour Sami, stated that “phishing is one of the fraudulent methods, and fraudsters apply it with random messages, asking the recipient to enter a link, which is the fish that the bait catches.”
He explained that “fraudsters have resorted to this method because it is easier and faster, because the returns of telephone fraud are no longer feasible in the current period, and it also takes a long time, unlike text messages.”
He added: “There are a group of signs that non-specialists can detect in these fraudulent and phishing messages, the first of which is poor language, as the fraudsters do not reside in the country – even if some of them resided there previously – and the messages are written in a weak form, in Arabic or English, because they are not the mother tongue of the fraudsters.” .
He continued: “The other matter is sending from an external number. Licensed entities within the country are labeled with letters, for example (name of bank), (name of entity), and if it is an advertisement, the sender’s name begins with AD. As for fraudulent messages, they are often from phone numbers, whether From inside or outside the country.” Abdel Nour pointed out that “the signs also include lack of connection. If your phone number is from (Etisalat) and you receive messages from (Du), you can be certain that the message is fraudulent, and vice versa. And if you reside in the Northern Emirates, for example, and you receive a message from Electricity. And Dubai or Sharjah water, the message is definitely fraudulent.” He called for paying close attention to website addresses, and checking whether they are the addresses you know. Government websites must end with .gov.ae or .ae for companies in the United Arab Emirates, such as “Emirates Post,” in whose name fraudulent messages are currently spreading. He warned against websites that Don't end with those labels.
He explained that if you encounter a fraudulent message, you must take a picture or copy the message and inform the official authorities, then block the sender and delete the message from the phone, with the necessity of not entering unknown links or interacting with them. You can also contact the concerned authority and inquire of it if the person has a transaction. A list according to which a message was sent to him or not. For his part, the legal advisor, Dr. Mohsen Al-Khabani, said: “Criminal gangs have emerged that use technology as a space for their fraudulent operations. They phishing via e-mail through mail messages that the recipient receives, pushing him to take urgent measures, and they usually carry the logos of service institutions and well-known destinations.”
He added: “When addressing the legal aspect of this issue, it is clearly evident that the legislator in the UAE is keen to update the laws and legislation related to combating cybercrimes, even if criminal gangs innovate in developing methods of electronic hacking and cybercrimes. However, the law remains a deterrent with the strict penalties it stipulates in this regard, and regarding the crimes that occur. The criminal sends fraudulent messages, using a false name or impersonating an incorrect capacity for the purpose of seizing money and personal data, and the penalties in this regard are deterrent.”
Al-Khabani explained that Article (40) of Federal Decree Law No. 34 of 2021 regarding combating rumors and electronic crimes regarding electronic fraud confirmed that it is punishable by imprisonment for a period of not less than one year and a fine of not less than 250 thousand dirhams and not exceeding one million dirhams, or one of the following: These two penalties apply to anyone who unlawfully seizes for himself or for another person a movable property or benefit or a document or the signature of this document, by using any fraudulent method or by assuming a false name or impersonating an incorrect capacity through the information network or an electronic information system or one of the following: Information technology means.
He continued: “However, despite the existence of these legislations, with which the Emirati legislator imposes deterrent penalties to ensure the creation of a safe cyber environment to ensure the positive use of these technologies, it is necessary, in order to prevent the occurrence of these crimes, to have a precautionary role for those who receive suspicious messages, through verification. From the official email of the company or entity, and from links before clicking on them by moving the cursor over the link to see the actual address to which it will go and whether it matches the official website of the sending party.
Dr.. Mohsen Al-Khabani:
• Imprisonment and a fine are the punishment for anyone who seizes movable property for himself or for others using electronic fraud methods.
Abdel Nour Sami:
• External numbers, the use of weak phrases, and the presence of linguistic errors are the most prominent signs of fraudulent messages.
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