The security & privacy stories our desk judged worth your time, written so anyone can follow them.
The Attala County Sheriff's Office in Mississippi says scam calls are reaching residents, and a call that sounds official may not be.
Read more: Mississippi sheriff warns residents about scam phone callsScammers are posing as Texas sheriff's officers and claiming you missed jury duty. Caller ID can show a real police number even when the call is fake.
Read more: Fake jury duty calls spoof a real Texas sheriff's phone numberFake PayPal emails and texts, some posing as a security report, try to get you to tap a link and type your login. Checking your account directly avoids the trap.
Read more: Got a fake PayPal message? Skip its link and check your account yourselfPolice in Bhubaneswar say scammers are pasting fake QR stickers on shop counters and sending fake loan, fine and gas messages to empty bank accounts.
Read more: Fake QR stickers and loan offers are draining bank accountsA user says Anthropic's Claude Code put his email in web requests, then scam messages arrived. The link is unproven, but it shows what AI tools can share.
Read more: User says Claude Code sent his email address to websitesHNB, a major Sri Lankan bank, says scammers are copying trusted names and logos to trick people into handing over private banking details.
Read more: Sri Lankan bank warns of fake pages and calls that copy trusted namesA fake call in Truro, Canada, sent a police tactical team to a woman's home. An RCMP officer now shares plain rules for spotting phone scams.
Read more: Canadian police share simple rules to beat phone scammersA tax law firm warns that 2026 tax scams use fake numbers, copycat websites and AI voices, and that a rushed demand for money is the biggest warning sign.
Read more: How to spot a tax scam before you send money or personal detailsSecurity firm Flashpoint says criminals are trading in refund tricks, gift card fraud and hacked online stores ahead of the holidays. Shop owners should check their refund steps.
Read more: Scammers are targeting store refunds and gift cards before the holidaysFake delivery texts ask for a tiny fee on a look-alike carrier site, then collect your full card details. Here is how to spot the scam and what to do if you paid.
Read more: A $1.95 fake delivery fee text can hand over your card numberKMBC 9 News has launched Scam School, a series on spotting the warning signs of scam texts and calls so you can protect your money and your family.
Read more: A local TV series shows the warning signs of phone and text scamsAI-made videos of well-known people are pushing fake investment platforms, and a quick web search may not expose them. Reports were tied to $7.4 million in losses.
Read more: Scammers use fake celebrity videos to push bogus investmentsDelhi Police say fake gift messages, fake shops and fake courier calls are circulating before Diwali, all aimed at your bank details or your phone.
Read more: Delhi Police warn of Diwali scams: fake gifts, fake shops, fake couriersSyncthing, a free open-source tool, copies phone photos straight to a Windows PC. One default setting can delete photos from your phone, so check it first.
Read more: A free tool backs up phone photos to your PC with no monthly feeOpenAI says it disproved a well-known belief about hard computer problems, and a top expert in the field calls the result shocking.
Read more: OpenAI says it disproved a long-held idea about hard computer problemsCookeville police say callers posing as officers are demanding money to clear a warrant. The department says it never does that, so the call is a scam.
Read more: Fake police callers in Cookeville demand money to clear warrantsCrédit Mutuel Arkéa, a French bank, says attackers used its own account to move up to $133 million. Customer money was not touched, but scam messages may follow.
Read more: Hackers steal up to $133 million from a French bankA message about phishing training can be a real workplace test or a scam that copies one to steal your password. The name alone does not tell you which.
Read more: That 'phishing training' email could be a real test or a scamGainesville, Texas police say scammers are calling while pretending to be the police chief. A real name makes the call sound believable, so know what to do.
Read more: Scammers are posing as a Texas police chief on phone callsMonaco police say scammers are calling residents with the force's real number on the screen, so a familiar caller ID no longer proves who is on the line.
Read more: Scammers are faking Monaco police phone calls using the real numberThe Atlanta consulate says scammers are spoofing its real phone number to scare ethnic Koreans into moving their money. Caller ID alone proves nothing.
Read more: Scammers fake consulate calls to drain victims' bank accountsApple's Passwords app can flag saved logins that appear in leaked data. Here is what the alert means and how to fix the logins it points to.
Read more: Your iPhone can warn you when a saved password has leakedMaya has joined a Philippine Justice Department group built to trace scam money and freeze fraud accounts. Users of payment apps should know the tools they already have.
Read more: Philippine Payment App Maya Joins Government Push to Freeze Scam AccountsSecurity firm CTM360 tracked more than 1,000 fake gift card incidents. The prizes never arrive, but a phone number and PIN can lead to charges on your bill.
Read more: Fake free gift cards from big brands never pay out, report finds
