Beware Gamers: The New Scam on Roblox and Fortnite
You know how we love leveling up in Roblox and Fortnite, right? Well, there’s this new boss-level scam that’s popped up recently. It’s got its crosshairs on the younger players among us, tricking them into downloading dodgy apps or spilling their personal deets. What’s the bait, you ask? They promise wicked rewards in the games, but spoiler alert: they’re as real as unicorns!
You know how tech keeps leaping forward, right? Well, guess what, so do the craftiness and complexity of online scams.
So, there’s this guy, right? His name’s Zach Edwards. For over three years, he’s been hot on the trail of these digital tricksters. Day in and day out, he’s been keeping tabs on them. Isn’t that something?
The group behind these attacks could be seen as primarily responsible for the massive infiltration of online infrastructure and hosting scams and other types of attacks.
Zach Edwards
You know those sneaky cyber troublemakers? They have this trick where they find weak spots in a website’s backend or its content management system. And what do they do next? They slip in these nasty PDF files that are packed with all sorts of mischief. Moreover, these files are sneakily disguised as free game-related rewards. They’re packed with popular search keywords on hot topics like free skins for Fortnite or Roblox coins. And guess what? They’re just bait to lure unsuspecting gamers into a trap.
Something worth knowing, Roblox Suffered A Net Loss of Almost $1 Billion in 2022. How much they will suffer this year? Stay tuned. Now, back to the story.
Inside the New Roblox and Fortnite Scam
These so-called “harmful PDFs”, as termed by Edwards, are strategically designed to appear in search results. When someone clicks on the links embedded in these files, they are taken through a labyrinth of websites, ultimately leading them to scam pages.
For instance, a link in a PDF promoting free Roblox coins or Fortnite V-Bucks is a facade. The link redirects to a website that requests your in-game username and operating system, and the number of coins you wish to receive for free. A pop-up message will then appear with the misleading prompt: “Last Step!”.
This “block page” promises to release in-game coins if you sign up for another service, share personal details, or download an app. However, Edwards affirms, “I’ve tried it hundreds of times,” yet he has never received a supposed reward.
As gamers navigate through this complex web of pages and perform the required actions such as downloading an app or sharing private information, the orchestrators of these scams reap monetary benefits.
Industry Reactions to the Scam
In response to these fraudulent practices, video game companies have denounced these websites hosting the blocking pages. “These are scams,” cautions Jake Jones, senior communications director at Epic Games, the company behind Fortnite.
He emphasizes that players have never had the ability to sell, gift, or trade Fortnite Free V-Bucks or virtual items. James Kay, a spokesperson for Roblox, echoes similar sentiments, stating that it’s a strict no-no to use third-party services to “buy, sell, trade, or give away Robux”.
Many of these harmful PDFs not only lead people to scams, but they also play a part in creating malware. Edwards noticed that these keyword-ridden PDFs would often appear following the publication of a negative news article about China, displacing the original article in search results and often containing harmful software.
As we keep exploring this huge world of digital wonders, it’s really key to stay sharp and clued up about any potential online nasties that could also be lurking out there. Want to keep tabs on scams like the ones hitting Roblox and Fortnite, and other shady stuff? Easy peasy! Subscribe to our newsletter and bam, you’re armored up and ready to tackle anything the internet throws at you.