My mom had an iPhone 10 and a month and a half ago, she encountered a scam through a pop-up when she was using Google Translate. She mistakenly clicked on the pop-up and ended up giving her card information, thinking she could get the latest iPhone for just $8 plus delivery fees. I advised her to stop interacting with the suspicious link (FORTUNESHERO), close the tab, and she quickly blocked her card. Now, I'm studying IT support but I'm unsure how to check her iPhone for any malware or trackers. Any tips would be greatly appreciated!
5 Answers
Where in the world would Apple sell an iPhone for $8? It's gotta be a scam, right?
Thanks for all your advice, everyone! I appreciate the tips and will make sure she’s aware of them.
Trackers really don't work on iOS because of how isolated the OS is. Unless your mom is a high-profile target, she’s probably safe from viruses, too. Most mobile 'malware' is just tricky ads aiming to steal personal info, like what she encountered. Browser notifications can often disguise themselves to trick users into thinking there's a virus when there isn't.
Her phone is likely just fine. The real concern is with the card info she provided—make sure she canceled that immediately and got a new one!
Honestly, I've never seen a virus on an iPhone, and I've been a user for years. If you're worried about malware, start by clearing cookies and tracking data from Safari or whatever browser she uses. Education is crucial; usually, those ads claiming to 'scan' your iPhone are just laughable! If Safari isn’t a must, try another browser. If she sticks to Safari, consider installing Adguard to block ads and redirects. And for Google Translate, just download the app from the App Store instead!
I'll install that when I go see her, thanks! I'm more familiar with Android, so I panicked when I heard this. Lol.
Yeah, I made sure of that. Everything got changed.