#CAPTCHA #Seniors #InternetScam
I’d thought I could identify an internet scam when it showed up, but there’s a new one out now. It’s slick and potentially dangerous if you fall for it. It’s called the CAPTCHA scam. CAPTCHA stands for “completely automated public turing test to tell computers and humans apart.”
The tests are those annoying interruptions when you’re trying to access a webpage. You typically have to click a box to prove you’re not a robot. Then you have to type in the skewed letters on the screen and click all the parts of the streetlight, or car or bus or whatever the image is. All this before it allows you to go to the page you’re trying to see. The newest scam is that these CAPTCHAs are spreading malware in your computer with every step.
This is a sneaky scam because we’ve been lulled into complacency about those CAPTCHA verification tests, and we might tend to just click on it to get through it. Things are different now. If you come across a CAPTCHA, check the address of the webpage by looking for “https” to be sure that little “s” is present.
Here’s how the scams work: You might be instructed to download a file or to press certain keys. Or, after completing the first step, you might end up on a fake webpage that looks a lot like the one you were trying to get to. Once you get through the steps, malware is installed on your computer without you knowing, and its job is to hunt for personal information on your machine.
If you suddenly get a CAPTCHA popping up when you don’t expect it, back out of the page. Don’t go there. Even if you’re sure you’re safe, don’t download anything that a CAPTCHA steers you to. And as always, keep good virus protection on your computer.
© 2025 King Features Synd., Inc.
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