Amazon has sent a warning to its 220 million Prime customers about an increase in impersonation scams targeting their accounts. The company said scammers are sending fake emails claiming that Prime subscription rates are about to rise. These emails often include a “cancel subscription” button that leads to a page designed to steal Prime account credentials.
Amazon explained that an impersonation scam is an attack where someone pretends to be a trustworthy entity to steal money or personal information. The scams can happen through phone calls, emails, text messages, or social media. The goal is to trick the victim into making a payment or providing their Amazon login details, which the attacker can then use to take over the account.
Some common attack methods include:
1. Prime membership scams that claim there is an issue with your subscription or an extra fee is owed. Amazon said it will never ask for payment or bank details over the phone or email.
2. Account suspension or deletion scams that threaten to suspend or delete your Amazon account unless you take a certain action. Amazon will not request your credentials or sensitive personal data over the phone or through an external website.
Amazon warns of escalating scams
3. Fake order confirmation scams involving unexpected messages about unauthorized purchases.
The scammer may ask for payment information, suggest buying gift cards, or tell you to install software. Always verify orders by logging directly into your Amazon account. 4.
Tech support scams using fake Amazon websites to lure customers into contacting the scammers. Use Amazon’s official help section instead of search engines to avoid these pages. 5.
Recruitment scams offering bogus Amazon jobs through unofficial channels and requesting personal info and payments. Legitimate Amazon jobs are only posted on Amazon.jobs. To protect against these scams, Amazon recommends verifying your Prime membership through the Amazon app or website, always accessing Amazon directly rather than through links, and checking the Message Center under “Your Account” to see if a message is really from Amazon.
The company urges customers to stay alert and report any suspicious emails targeting their accounts.