Social media warning alerts Oxford residents to CAPTCHA phishing scam
A social media post warned Oxford, Mississippi, residents about a phishing scam that disguises itself as a CAPTCHA verification and tries to trick users into running commands that install malware on their devices.
The post, which included the hashtags #OxfordMS and #OxfordPD, said the scam asks users to press Windows + R, then Ctrl + V, then Enter. The post warned that legitimate CAPTCHAs never ask people to run system commands.
Officials advised that anyone who already interacted with the fake CAPTCHA should disconnect from the internet, run a security scan and change passwords while using two-factor authentication. Phishing attacks commonly try to persuade victims to take actions that give attackers control of a device or access to accounts.
CAPTCHAs are typically used to distinguish humans from automated bots and do not require running operating system commands. Readers are advised to be cautious with unexpected prompts, keep security software up to date and enable multi-factor authentication where available. We will provide more information as it becomes available.
