People all over Victoria, from Sidney to Saanich, have been filing reports of an unusual email scam that sounds quite serious and threatening.
A Victoria Buzz follower sent us a copy of the email, in which the sender correctly states the victim’s password, and then goes on to inform them that their webcam has been hacked.
The scammer then claims to be in possession of videos that were taken of the victim watching porn, and threatens to publish them unless the victim makes a Bitcoin payment of $1,400.
According to Sidney/North Saanich RCMP Cpl. Chris Manseau, the detachment has received a dozen or so complaints about this particular scam over the past few days.
As far as police know, so far no one in Victoria has lost any money to this fraud. However, its occurrence has been reported throughout the province. Authorities are advising individuals not to buy into anything the scammers are saying, and not to send them any money.
If you receive the following email, change your password and contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre or your local police detachment right away.
The contents of the email:
Sent to us by an anonymous Victoria Buzz follower:
“I’m aware that XXXXXXX is your password.
You don’t know me and you’re thinking why you received this e mail, right?
Well, I actually placed a malware on the porn website and guess what, you visited this web site to have fun (you know what I mean). While you were watching the video, your web browser acted as a RDP (Remote Desktop) and a keylogger which provided me access to your display screen and webcam. Right after that, my software gathered all your contacts from your Messenger, Facebook account, and email account.
What exactly did I do?
I made a split-screen video. First part recorded the video you were viewing (you’ve got a fine taste haha), and next part recorded your webcam (Yep! It’s you doing nasty things!).
What should you do?
Well, I believe, $1400 is a fair price for our little secret. You’ll make the payment via Bitcoin to the below address (if you don’t know this, search “how to buy bitcoin” in Google) .
BTC Address: 1Dvd7Wb72JBTbAcfTrxSJCZZuf4tsT8V72
(It is cAsE sensitive, so copy and paste it)
Important:
You have 24 hours in order to make the payment. (I have an unique pixel within this email message, and right now I know that you have read this email). If I don’t get the payment, I will send your video to all of your contacts including relatives, coworkers, and so forth. Nonetheless, if I do get paid, I will erase the video immidiately. If you want evidence, reply with “Yes!” and I will send your video recording to your 5 friends. This is a non-negotiable offer, so don’t waste my time and yours by replying to this email.“
