PHISHING SCAM JOE MILLER IS AT IT AGAIN
Carter Newhouse, the resident phishing scam expert is back with another edition of his sensational thriller, “TO CATCH A PHISH”! Get your copy before you become “ITS” latest victim. In this ‘catch and release’ serial, the main antagonist PHISHING SCAM “Joe Miller” is back. This time, with a NEW domain address registered in January, just in time for the new year scam season!
There is no end in sight for this chameleon “PHISH” but Carter Newhouse has once again hunted down the source. The mysterious “PHISH” called “Joe Miller” streams up and down the sewer canal in search of a victim. Since it didn’t make any headways in 2020, it reinvented itself in 2021 and no doubt will materialise again in future years.
The problem with this “PHISH” is that creativity is not its strong suit. Joe Miller was easy to trace. It left distinctive markings, just like a wild animal marks their territory. It was really that obvious.
WHY PHISHING SCAM “Joe Miller” is ‘LOW RENT’
The Joe Miller phishing scam was so ‘common place’, that the delivery method was ‘low rent’. It was easy to see the ploy, and it really was that obvious. We caught it in the act PRETENDING it was from domainregistration.com. It was actually from domain-registration.me, registered on 6th January 2021 and NOT renewed when it expired in 2022 [updated]. These links don’t go to the domain, but to GoDaddy Whois.
True to ‘dumb’ thief form, this PHISH used “Joe Miller” as ITS ploy name, but registered the name NETIM SARL on netim.com. No points for originality here! It will be back to scam again.
In 2020, this same “PHISH” registered the domain gohostingdomains.com and then PRETENDED it was from domainworld.com. BOTH of these links will direct to the GoDaddy Whois. The FAKE site was registered on 16th August 2020. At that time, “Joe Miller” used namecheap.com to register the FAKE domain. If you search “Phishing scam Joe Miller” a bunch of warnings will show up.
Here is one that identically mimics the notice we received. It’s from LeGa Design Group. Their notice was dated 30th August 2020. Definitely no points for originality! The notice number, 491343 is a carbon copy too! PHISHING “Joe Miller” doesn’t waste any time. As soon as it registers the NEW FAKE domain address, it goes hunting for victims. The domain name has changed but not the same ‘carbon copied’ script.
PRETEND YOU ARE NOT AT HOME
One way to combat phishing, spoofing and social engineering scams is ‘pretend’ you are not at home. Nothing frustrates scammers than the ‘ghosting’ treatment. At Gabrielle Bourne Media, we excel at ‘ghosting’ techniques.
Ignore ALL incoming messages except the ones that are pre-approved. Only those with clearance should have privy to your actual information. You see, multiple buffers are better than one and at least one is better than none. So, if you have the opportunity to set up verifications for all your accounts, then do so now.
If you get a call, email or text from unknowns, just pretend you are not at home. Close the blinds and don’t answer the door to strangers. Filter and block unwanted emails, texts and calls. Use a VPN in public spaces like Starbucks. Get a secondary phone number, not associated with your real phone number.