The Norton LifeLock scam is a popular type of phishing scam. Fraudsters send an email which appears to come from Norton, a real cybersecurity software company, in an attempt to steal money or personal information from the recipient. These scams can be convincing and may result in major financial loss for individuals and businesses. Here’s everything you need to know about these scams and how you can avoid becoming a victim.
What Is Norton LifeLock?
Norton LifeLock is a cybersecurity product that helps users prevent and resolve identity theft. It does this by scanning the internet for illegitimate use of personal information and reimbursing users for money stolen as a result of identity theft.
Norton LifeLock is part of the Norton brand. Norton was an independent company but merged with antivirus company Avast to form a new company called Gen in 2022.
Both Norton and Gen are legitimate. In fact, Newsweek named Gen one of the most trustworthy companies in America and PC Mag called Norton one of the best tech brands for 2024.
What Is Phishing?
Phishing is when fraudsters contact individuals via email, text, or phone call, posing as a legitimate organization. These messages may:
- include a malicious link or attachment that contains malware
- persuade users to reveal sensitive information e.g. credit card details
- trick users into transferring money
Phishing emails can be very convincing. They may feature the branding of the company or personal information about the recipient. Some scammers can even spoof the domain of a legitimate company.
How Do Norton LifeLock Scams Work?
The most common variation of the Norton LifeLock scam involves phishing emails. Scammers send emails that look like they come from Norton in order to steal recipients’ money or information. These emails usually feature Norton branding and often:
- advise the recipient to renew their subscription
- include a fake invoice
- warn the recipient about a virus on their computer
- warn the recipient that their antivirus settings are expiring
- advise the recipient of a charge to their credit card or bank account
A Norton phishing scam can also take the form of a text message or unsolicited call. Scammers have even run advertising campaigns that look like official Norton marketing.
What Do the Scammers Want?
Norton email scams will try to persuade recipients to do one of the following things.
1. Call a Phone Number
Recipients are often encouraged to call a bogus help line. On the call, the representative asks for personal or credit card information, supposedly in order to verify the caller’s account or process a refund for an unexpected charge. This information can be used to steal your money or identity.
2. Download Attachments
Emails may include what appears to be an invoice or receipt but is in fact a malicious file carrying malware. Clicking on the attachment launches the malware which could be designed to steal your passwords, take screenshots of your device (potentially for blackmail purposes), or grab your bank details.
Attachments can also contain ransomware, a type of malicious software which prevents you from accessing your device or data stored on the device unless you pay the scammers a ransom. Companies in certain industries are at increased risk of ransomware attacks. Human error is often the greatest cause of cybersecurity failures so make sure every employee knows how to stay safe from these scams.
3. Click on Fake Links
A scam email may encourage recipients to follow a link to a bogus Norton website to buy or renew their LifeLock or other products. These scammer-run websites are designed to trick users into entering sensitive information, transferring money, or downloading malware.
4. Reply with Sensitive Information
A scam email may simply ask the recipient to reply with their personal or account information in order to “verify their account” or “provide a refund”. Sometimes they even ask you to download remote viewing software before asking you to log into your bank account to steal your savings.
6 Ways to Identify a Fake Email
- Look at the subject line. Does it look right? Do you subscribe to emails from that company? Is that the sort of thing they usually send?
- Check the email address. Does the email address match the official domain? Is the brand name spelled or punctuated strangely?
- Consider the content. Is it about a payment you never made or a subscription you never signed up for? Does it ask you to do something unusual? A legitimate organization would not ask you to share your credit card details in an email.
- Check the tone. A threatening tone or urgent request is a red flag for phishing.
- Look for spelling errors, poor grammar, and unprofessional formatting. These are unusual for emails from large organizations (though not all phishing emails have these kinds of mistakes).
- Verify, verify, verify. If the email says a payment has been taken from your account, go to the official website (but not via a link or domain provided in the email) to check your account. If it includes a phone number, compare it to the phone numbers listed on the website (and only call the number on the real website).
5 Tips for Avoiding Scams
If you or one of your employees get fooled by a scam email, you’ll need protections in place. It’s wise to take the following precautions.
- Set up strong antivirus and malware protection on all devices.
- Limit the information you share online. Scammers can use personal or company information to make their phishing schemes more convincing.
- Set up multi-factor authentication on all your online accounts and set alerts so you’ll know right away if there are any strange payments or purchases.
- Train employees to detect suspicious emails, texts and calls. You can even send out mock phishing emails to help them practice. Set up a system for staff to report phishing attempts so you can forewarn other employees about what to look out for.
- Don’t respond to suspicious emails. Never provide sensitive information over email and if you’re asked for sensitive information over the phone, call back on a phone number listed on the official company website.
Other Brands That Scammers Impersonate
Phishing scammers come up with new schemes every day but here are a few to bear in mind.
LinkedIn Scams
LinkedIn phishing emails may say that you have a new notification, that your LinkedIn Premium subscription is renewing, or ask you to reset your password. Check the email address and go to your LinkedIn profile directly to verify the email.
PayPal Scams
Bogus PayPal emails may say that you’ve received a payment or that your account has been suspended. Some scams even involve more than one brand, like this example which features both PayPal and Norton branding.
Amazon Scams
Many of us engage with Amazon regularly, whether we’re shopping, streaming, or using Alexa. We’re so used to getting emails from Amazon, we might not blink when we get suspicious emails purporting to be from Amazon. These may request updated payment information or update you on an order you aren’t expecting. Also go through the app when providing sensitive information or making a payment.
Don’t Fall for the Norton LifeLock Scams
Phishing scammers send emails that look like they come from legitimate brands. Norton is a legitimate antivirus site but scammers impersonate Norton to steal money and information from their victims. The most common version of this scam encourages email recipients to call a help line to resolve an unexpected charge. The scammers then try to draw out personal information over the phone.
Never share sensitive information over the phone unless you are certain who is on the end of the line. Learn to identify the red flags that indicate phishing and set up systems that will protect your money and data if you or your employees fall victim to a phishing scam.