It appears that some bidorbuy members have been receiving email messages pretending to be from bidorbuy, asking them to “click here” in order to confirm or update their bidorbuy account. The link directs the recipient to a fake (or spoof) site where he is prompted to provide his bidorbuy user name and password or login details. That information is later used by criminals to access the user’s account or – which is equally bad – to defraud others under the guise of the user in question, for example, listing items for sale with no intention of delivering.

That is why it is important to be able to recognise phishing attacks and to avoid them.

How to recognise phishing emails

Phishing emails usually contain one or all of the following characteristics:

• They are usually not addressed to you, but to a “Dear bidorbuy member”.
• They have an urgent tone, for example: “Account Suspension – Urgent Action Required”.
• They contain links to web pages that look like bidorbuy, but are not the real thing; always check the destination URL address.
• They ask for confidential information such as your bidorbuy username, password, credit card numbers or bank details.

What to do if you receive a phishing email

• Nothing. Do not reply to it, do not open any of the links contained in it.
• If you are uncertain as to whether the email you received is really from bidorbuy or not, open your browser, type in the bidorbuy address (which must look exactly like this: http://www.bidorbuy.co.za), log in and check to see that everything is all right with your account. All bidorbuy email will be sent from an email address containing this domain name: bidorbuy.co.za.
• Alternatively, contact our customer support at hello@bidorbuy.co.za or call us on 0861 88 0861. Do not use the contact details provided in the suspicious message.

How to protect yourself against phishing attacks

• Keep your bidorbuy password secret. Never disclose it to anyone and make sure to change it occasionally; bidorbuy will never ask you for this information.
• Regularly log into online accounts to monitor the activity and check statements.
• Use antivirus, antispam, and firewall software and keep your operating system and applications up-to-date.