‘The Last of Us’ scam: Cybercriminals use series to deceive and steal fans

With the success of the new HBO series, scammers are carrying out frauds based on the game that gave rise to the series

With the highly anticipated launch of ‘The Last of Us’ series on the HBO Max platform based on the award-winning PlayStation game of the same name, cybercriminals are already plotting new schemes to make new unsuspecting victims.

Scammers are already running PlayStation game scams and, in order to infect victims with malware, are offering fraudulent downloads of an unreleased ‘The Last of Us’ PC game for financial gain.

The new HBO series debuted last weekend and the searchers of kaspersky found a new fraud involving the franchise.

Cybercriminals have set up websites offering to download “The Last of Us Part II” game for PC ― and the game is still exclusive to PlayStation ―, with the computer release scheduled for March 2023 only.

Taking advantage of this lack of information, the scammers made a malicious file available instead of the real game. This file can hide on your computer undetected for a long time – you won’t know something is wrong because it may not cause any visible damage, only to discover that your personal data has been used for another scam.

Kaspersky experts have also discovered a phishing website offering an activation code for ‘The Last of Us’. To download the code file, users are invited to choose one of the “gifts” they will receive with the game: for example, to get a new PlayStation 5 console or a $100 Roblox gift card.

However, after that, users are prompted to enter their credentials and credit card details to pay the fee. In fact, by providing their details to scammers, fans will have their money stolen, while their personal details will later be used in other fraud schemes.

Expert opinion

“‘The Last of Us’ will be a real boom in early 2023, considering how long millions of fans of the game have been waiting for the series. Interestingly, instead of offering early access to the series, cybercriminals have chosen a different path and are distributing malicious files disguised as the game. This shows that gamers, especially new ones who still don’t know enough about cybersecurity, are among the top target audiences of cybercriminals and will find more and more ways to exploit them.” comments Olga Svistunova, security expert at Kaspersky.

“Stay tuned and make sure your coveted game is available on the offered platform, buy only from official app stores and don’t forget to use a reliable security solution,” complete.

Tips to avoid such scams

To avoid falling victim to malicious programs and scams, Kaspersky recommends:

• • Avoid links that promise early previews of movies or TV series. If you have any doubts about the authenticity of the content, search online in stores and official websites;
• • Verify the authenticity of the site before entering personal data and use only official and reliable pages to watch or download movies. Double-check the URL formats and spelling of your business name;
• • Pay attention to the extensions of the files you are downloading. A video file will never have an .exe or .msi extension;
• • Use a reliable security solution, such as those recommended by Kaspersky, which identifies malicious attachments and blocks phishing websites.

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Source: Terra

Camila

Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.