Any time there's a hot new gadget out, the scammers are going to have bait to lure in victims with. While the iPad may have been on the markets for several months now, it remains a very much desired product.

According to comment passed along to us from Symantec, the sought after Apple tablet is now being used to spread a Twitter spam campaign. Apparently the attack uses the promise of a free iPad to send the user to a shortened URL link. The tactic is common for luring users into an attack site, phishing page, or any other unsavory web operation.

Apple users by now should know that the promise of any free i-product is almost certainly an invitation to a scam. Apple has in recent years expanded its operation to stores like Best Buy and Wal-Mart, but it's a pretty safe bet that none of Apple's retail partners is advertising its operations by sending you unsolicited messages from strange accounts.

As always, the best defence in this case is common sense. If a Tweet, Wall Post, or email message comes by promising a product that is otherwise a hot commodity, the deal is going to be too good to be true.

With most cases like this we're preaching to the choir on Mac Inspector. Much like the Mac malware scares and email scams, it's not the tech savvy blog readers that are likely to fall for the attack, but the less knowledgeable friends, family and co-workers. So if a friend or family member passes along such messages, delete it and then summon your patience to explain to them the situation and how to avoid such attacks in the future.

10 Aug 2010