It seems not even the death of one of Hollywood’s most loved stars is sacred in the world of cybercrime. Barely 24 hours have passed since the news that Patrick Swayze finally lost his 20 month battle with cancer, and already hackers are taking advantage of the worldwide interest in his death. Cybercriminals are developing malicious websites which lead to fake anti-virus alerts, scamming users into purchasing a bogus software ‘fix’.

Hackers are notoriously quick to react to celebrity news and develop malicious web pages. Unfortunately, internet users who aren’t careful can easily be duped into handing over cash and personal details to fraudsters masquerading as legitimate anti-virus providers.

Working in the technology sector and having used the internet all my working life, it can sometimes seem hard to believe that people would fall for these types of scams. The scary thing is that these sites do look surprisingly believable, so for a generation of people who might not be so aware (I’m thinking of my parents, for example), they really could get themselves into trouble.

The lesson is be careful what you click on.