Beware! Scammers exploit Barbenheimer mania with fraudulent ticket sales, streaming sites
WASHINGTON (7News) — Scammers are trying to capitalize on the Barbenheimer phenomenon. More than 200,000 people are estimated to have bought tickets for both Oppenheimer and Barbie during the opening weekend.
Aura, a company offering cybersecurity tools and identity theft insurance, reported a spike in fraudulent websites leading up to the Barbenheimer release date. It used artificial intelligence tools to identify malicious sites and found more than 200 since the start of July.
Some are made to look like streaming sites offering up the movies for free. But Aura said if you click, it’ll download a malicious file. Other sites are looking to steal payment and login details.
ALSO READ |'Barbie' takes top spot with 'Oppenheimer' in 2nd amid historic box office bonanza
Right now, Barbie and Oppenheimer are only showing in theaters.
Tips from Aura:
- Spelling mistakes in the domain name
- No padlock symbol in the top left corner of browser (indicates unsecure website)
- Poor spelling in the body of the website and design discrepancies
- Domain has not been active for very long (domain trackers can tell you this information)
- Deals that seem too good to be true
- Payment methods used are payment transfer apps as opposed to credit card
Let 7News On Your Side’s Call For Action team know about scams here.