Major waves of spam

Researchers at Secure Computing have released

a report on six major waves of spam that hit inboxes around the

world last month:

Phishing Attacks - Asking users to type personal details

into a website that is fraudulently designed to look like a bank or

other service provider. 

Fashion Spam - Attempting to sell knockoff luxury goods

including designer clothing, watches and perfumes from

brands including Bally, Boss, Burberry, and Chloe.

Loan Spam - Luring people with promises of financial

freedom, often using the fear of a looming economic slowdown.

Penny Stocks with Nearly Legitimate Acronyms - Trying to influence the stock markets by

creating false hype, also known as "pump and dump" scams.

Stock will be purchased by the spammers prior to an email

campaign. When talking about a 3 cent stock, even 4 or 5 cents

could be a significant increase in capital. The stock is then

dumped at its higher price.

Win a BlackBerry - Promising a free BlackBerry. Spammers are

notorious for driving their victims to a hacked site by exploiting

natural greed.

False Headlines - Employing shock value to lure someone

to click a link which only offers up a Trojan. These headlines

include rumors of abuse in Iraq, corruption and sex scandals in

local governments and colleges.