January 17, 2024 at 01:34AM
Netcraft discovered that scammers are exploiting cheap domain names to promote fake health products through deceptive news campaigns, mimicking popular news outlets and falsely claiming endorsements from TV shows like Shark Tank and Dragons’ Den. The proliferation of new global top-level domain names, such as .sbs and .cloud, at low prices facilitates widespread cyber-attacks.
Based on the meeting notes, it is clear that cybercrime disruption outfit Netcraft has identified a concerning trend of scammers purchasing inexpensive domain names to host websites that promote dubious health products using fake news campaigns. These fake articles often falsely claim endorsements from entrepreneurial reality shows such as Shark Tank and Dragons’ Den. The scammers utilize social media to spread their fraudulent content, and Netcraft specifically highlights their use of newly registered domain names within the global top-level domain names (gTLDs).
Netcraft has observed that certain gTLDs, such as .cloud and .sbs, are being exploited by scammers due to their low acquisition cost. For example, the .sbs gTLD, originally belonging to Australia’s Special Broadcasting Service, is now being used for promoting health scams. Netcraft’s analysts have noted a significant increase in health product scams using the .sbs gTLD in the summer of 2023, with a large number of distinct IP addresses hosting these scams.
Furthermore, the firm found that approximately 30 percent of all new registrations in the .cloud domain were for fraudulent health-related sites throughout 2023. The US Federal Trade Commission has also expressed concern about the misuse of celebrity endorsements from shows like Shark Tank for promoting these dubious health products.
In conclusion, Netcraft’s analysis highlights the significant volume of fraudulent health product websites utilizing newly registered gTLDs, which allows scammers to efficiently spread their campaigns and makes it challenging to counteract these cyber-attacks. This information underscores the need for vigilance and proactive measures against such fraudulent activities on the internet.