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Neopets is, for the most part, a very safe place to hang out and TheNeopetsTeam is trying very hard to keep it that way. However, there are still ways that bad people can abuse the trust or inexperience of their fellow Neopians to gain NP, items, or just a quick laugh. They fall under a variety of categories - n00bs, scammers, hackers, etc. We've compiled a list of common ways these jerks try to rip others off in hopes you too will not become a victim.
1. Fake Staff - Someone might neomail you and tell you that he (or she) is a member of the neopets staff and they have lost your password, are doing a checkup or a number of other excuses and need your password or account information. No matter how sincere they may sound, they are ALWAYS lying! The only neomail account Neopets will use to contact you is "TheNeopetsTeam", and they will never ask you for your account info or contact you via AIM, YIM, or any other email/messenger service. Anyone else is trying to scam you!
2. Proud Hackers - Some people will neomail you exclaiming that they already have your password and unless you hand over your items and neopoints to them they will freeze your account. They are lying. They have nothing.
3. Bargain Sellers/Fake Log-in pages - Once in a while you will see an item being sold for really cheap even if its worth hundreds of thousands of NP. When you try to buy it you will reach the "you are logged out" screen. In your rush to attempt to get back on the site you might enter your username and password in an attempt to log back in. THIS IS ALL A SCAM! If you check the address bar on your browser, you're likely to find that the supposed "Logged Out" screen is not even on the Neopets server (meaning it does not begin http://www.neopets.com). The page might look EXACTLY like the official logged out page, but don't be fooled. Your username and password will be emailed to the scammer if you use this page!
4. HTML writers - Some people will show you an HTML code that's supposed to give you a million neopoints or something else. In that code, somewhere it tells you to enter your name and password - that is a giveaway that its a scam.
5. Fake Allies - Some people will post a message on a chat room or guild board saying they found a way to cheat and then a completely different user will back them up five minutes later. You must remember the two are one and the same. You can check the second user's status and see that he's a newbie who only started playing a little while ago. In other words, its a fake account and the whole thing is a lie.
6. Email Scammers - If ANYONE for ANY REASON tries to get you to change the email address you gave to Neopets, they're trying to scam you! If you change your email address to any account other than your own, you're giving someone else access to your password through the Lost Password Retrieval service.
Keep Neopia clean! REPORT SCAMMERS!
Ways to Protect Yourself
Browsing:
- Never give out your password to anyone under ANY circumstance!
- Never attempt to cheat the Neopets system! There is no secret code or hidden webpage that will give you anything of significant value for free.
- Never advertise how many Neopoints you have- you'll only make yourself a target.
- Neither a borrower nor a lender be! Only "loan" items you are willing to lose as it is unlikely you will ever get them back.
- Ignore pity posts or emails in any form. Pity posts are people begging for money or items - i.e. "I'm broke, can u plz give me sumthin?" or "My account got hakked! I need np!!!!" Often, they are either too lazy to make NP on their own, or are scammers looking for some rich Neopian to hack. Either way, they're not worth your time or your NP.
Your Computer:
- Determine how vulnerable your computer is to scammers or hackers. They're everywhere, not just Neopia, but you can still fight them the same way. PCPitstop.com is an excellent first step in protecting your computer
- Install a firewall on your computer - it helps to keep other people from stealing information from your computer or installing malware on your computer while you browse the Internet. Malware (sometimes called Spyware) is any kind of program that tracks your internet movement, records information you input, or reports your browsing habits to it's creator. Malware can steal important info - like your Neopets password, your Social Security number, or credit card info. Less harmful programs may merely cause a lot of pop-ups, but your info is still being tracked.
- Install anti-spyware or anti-malware programs such as Ad-aware or Spybot. These will allow you to search out any malware already installed on your computer and will often help keep new programs from latching on to your system.
- Check your comp often for viruses or tracking devices. A simple virus scan can save you a lot of aggrivation and keep your computer safe from hackers. Trendmicro.com has an awesome FREE online virus scan with up-to-the-minute data on viruses worldwide.
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