10.09.2024 - Fraudsters take advantage of every opportunity to get their hands on your money. Last week, two cases were reported to the NCSC in which motorists were targeted by fraudsters. The schemes involved fake websites for motorway stickers in Austria and parking fines in Switzerland.
Overpayment scams and cheque fraud are outdated. Under such scams companies are commonly asked to purchase services from third parties that go beyond the original order. Under normal circumstances the cheque provided should cover all expenses – but in such scams there are no funds to cover the cheque. The third parties to whom the payments are made are fake companies that belong to the scammers. As cheques are now rarely used in Switzerland, scammers are testing new approaches using modern payment methods, as a case reported to the NCSC last week shows.
27.08.2024 - The NCSC has received more reports of hacked WhatsApp accounts in recent days. The approach is similar to what we already observed last year: someone you know contacts you on WhatsApp and asks you to help them with an urgent problem. All you have to do is forward them an SMS code. What's different now is that the scammers are writing in dialect and trying to get you to send them money via TWINT.
22.08.2024 -The increasing interconnectedness of systems along the supply chain provides cybercriminals with many different ways to attack an organisation. It is therefore important for companies and public authorities to understand their supply chains and be aware of the cyber risks they face. National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has launched a pilot project together with Planzer Transport AG so that companies, authorities and organizations in Switzerland can easily implement their cyber security requirements in the supply chain. A simple cycle was designed to demonstrate protective measures against cyber attacks in the supply chain. The pilot project also provides specific tools that are published on the NCSC website. At the Online Brownbag Lunch on 5 September 2024, the NCSC and Planzer Transport AG will demonstrate how organizations can correctly assess cyber risks in their supply chains.
20.08.2024 - Data leaks from online service providers are giving scammers new ideas. They are combining information from multiple data leaks to create new data sets that they can then use to scam their victims. The NCSC has received reports of several cases of sextortion where scammers have done exactly this.
13.08.2024 - The holiday season is slowly coming to an end and we have all made wonderful memories to look back on. To ensure that our memories remain safe, it is important that we think about cybersecurity. Read on to learn what to look out for.
06.08.2024 - QR codes have become ubiquitous. A quick scan and you can call up the menu in a restaurant and then pay the bill, for example. They are often to be found on parking meters, which can be useful if you don’t have any change. But beware: QR codes can also be faked. Quishing , or QR phishing, where attackers use QR codes to steal sensitive information, is on the rise.
30.07.2024 - Mobile phones have become an indispensable companion, even on holiday. Whether you're trying to find directions, buy tickets or look up information: you can do it all on your smartphone. The camera also allows us to take photos and create memories wherever we go. But along with holiday snaps, these compact devices also store personal information such as contacts, emails and login details. If your smartphone is lost or stolen, the consequences can quickly become very serious. That's why it's important to have the best possible security measures on your phone so as to protect your data from fraud if it's stolen.
23.07.2024 - Public WiFi networks at hotels, cafes and airports are a convenient and often free way to access the internet while avoiding roaming charges. Unfortunately, they are also a popular target for cybercriminals looking to steal personal information such as credit card details. Recently, a person was arrested in Australia for setting up fraudulent networks on planes and in airports.
19.07.2024 - The NCSC is aware of system failures worldwide and has received corresponding reports from various companies and critical infrastructures in Switzerland. It is a faulty update or misconfiguration by the company CrowdStrike that is causing these system failures. NCSC is in contact with the affected companies. There are currently no known outages in the Federal Administration.
