Online Safety

That ‘Google Alert’ Email Might Be a Scam—Here’s How to Tell If you use Gmail or any Google service, you’re used to receiving automated alerts from Google—about account sign-ins, security changes, or suspicious activity. That familiarity is exactly what makes the latest phishing wave so effective. Scammers are now sending fake Google notifications that look nearly identical to the real ones, with the goal of stealing your login credentials. ...

Social media scams cost Americans billions: How to spot and avoid them Online fraud has shifted decisively onto social media platforms. According to the Federal Trade Commission, older Americans alone lost $2.4 billion to scams in 2024. And those are just the reported cases. With AI tools now common among scammers, the problem is only getting worse. ...

Your Chrome Extensions Might Be Spying on You: How to Check and Secure Them Many of us have a handful of Chrome extensions installed—a password manager, an ad blocker, a note-taking tool, perhaps a grammar checker. They make browsing faster and more convenient. But each extension you add also adds a potential entry point for attackers. Recent reports describe a rise in “supply-chain attacks” where legitimate productivity extensions are hijacked or quietly updated with malicious code, turning them into backdoors into your browser, your accounts, and your data. ...

That Google Alert Might Be a Scam—Here’s How to Recognize the Fake If you use Gmail, Google Drive, or Google Ads, chances are you’ve seen a notification pop up warning about “unusual activity” or telling you your account will be suspended unless you act immediately. A new wave of phishing emails and pop-ups is impersonating these legitimate Google alerts—and they look convincing enough to fool even careful users. ...

That Google Alert Might Be a Scam: How to Spot the Latest Phishing Trick A new wave of phishing emails is hitting inboxes, and this one is unusually convincing. According to a recent report from Reader’s Digest, scammers are sending messages that look nearly identical to official Google communications—complete with realistic logos, formatting, and even fake account activity summaries. The goal is the same as always: trick you into clicking a link and handing over your credentials. But because the design is so polished, even cautious users have paused before realizing something is off. ...

Chrome Extension Warning: How Productivity Tools Can Become Attack Vectors If you use Chrome at work or at home, you probably have a handful of extensions installed. A grammar checker, a tab manager, a password tool. They make daily tasks faster. But over the past year, a growing number of these seemingly harmless add-ons have turned into entry points for attackers. ...

Don’t Get Fooled by This Google Scam That Looks Exactly Like the Real Thing If you use Gmail, Google Drive, or any other Google service, a convincing new phishing scam is worth knowing about. It mimics Google’s official login screens and notifications so closely that even experienced users have been caught off guard. This isn’t a hypothetical threat—the scam is actively circulating as of late April 2026, as reported by Reader’s Digest. ...

Is That Productivity Chrome Extension a Backdoor? How to Spot Fake Tools Browser extensions have long been a convenient way to add features to Chrome, from grammar checkers to tab managers. But a recent wave of attacks shows that some “productivity tools” are anything but helpful. Security researchers and the FBI have begun investigating cases where seemingly legitimate extensions quietly exfiltrate user data, acting as backdoors into both personal accounts and corporate networks. Here’s what happened, why it matters for you, and how to clean up your browser. ...

How to Spot a New Google Scam That Looks Totally Legit A convincing new phishing campaign is targeting Google users with alerts that appear to come directly from Google. The scam, recently reported by Reader’s Digest, sends notifications warning of suspicious account activity or a security breach. The email or text looks nearly identical to legitimate Google security alerts, including official logos and formatting. But the goal is to steal your login credentials. ...

How to Spot the New Google Scam That Looks Too Real (And What to Do If You Clicked) A convincing new phishing campaign is making the rounds, impersonating Google with a login page that looks nearly identical to the real thing. The scam, recently reported by Reader’s Digest, targets anyone who uses Gmail, Google Drive, or other Google services. Here’s how it works—and what you can do to avoid getting caught. ...