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Did You Know??? Malware Is "Tricky"!

鈥淪careware鈥� sounds like a set of dishes you use on Halloween, right?听 Well, it is actually malware that tries to scare you into thinking your device has been infected with a virus to trick you into downloading a quick fix.听 If you download the so-called solution, it will steal your personal data from your device!

Here are some signs of scareware to watch out for:

• It pops up in front of open applications and browsers (as in the example below).
• The pop-up scares you into thinking there is a major problem with your device.
• The more menace or shock there is - the more likely it is to be scareware.
• Urgency is another key feature.
• The close button is hard to find or hidden.
• If the close button is found and clicked on, more fake warnings pop up and/or malicious software is downloaded to your device.

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There are several ways to avoid having your personal data stolen by scareware:

• Avoid the 鈥渃lick reflex鈥� 鈥� stop and think before you click.
• Never click a 鈥渄ownload鈥� button.
• Safely exit from scareware by locating the program in your taskbar that corresponds to the pop-up, right click on it, and select Close.
• If that does not work 鈥� do a hard shutdown of your device.

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