Tinyurl2.ru is a deceptive website that hosts various phishing scams. Messages with links to this site are currently going around WhatsApp and Telegram, and users are invited to participate in a survey to receive prizes. It’s also possible to encounter the Tinyurl2.ru phishing scam while browsing the Internet. It’s classified as a phishing scam because scam operators try to steal users’ personal information. The scam often uses known brand names like Google, Coca-Cola, and Heineken.
Users who end up on Tinyurl2.ru (whether because they clicked on a link or because they were redirected) will be greeted with a message saying they can win a prize if they complete a simple survey. The promised prize may be a box of Heineken beer or Coca-Cola. The questions are usually basic and related to the brand to make it seem like the survey is meant to gain insights into customers’ opinions. After users complete the survey, they may be asked to share the link to the survey with 20 WhatsApp or Telegram contacts.
Once users have completed the survey, they will be asked to fill in their personal information to supposedly receive the prize. The requested information is usually full name, home address, email address, and phone number, though it may vary depending on the scam. Users may also be asked to provide their banking information so “giveaway organizers” can supposedly charge a couple of dollars for shipping. Personal and financial information theft is the whole point of this phishing scam. If users provide this information, the malicious actors operating the scam will either sell the information or use it for their own malicious campaigns.
It goes without saying that this is all a scam. Users will not receive any of the promised prizes. It’s also worth noting that every single one of these types of “giveaways” will be a scam. If a company like Coca-Cola were to do a giveaway, they would announce it via official channels (e.g. their social media), certainly not via questionable messages with links.
For users who have provided their information to scammers, there’s not much they can do. If users gave away their payment information, they need to immediately contact their bank. If fraudulent transactions were made, it may be possible to reverse them.
How is the Tinyurl2.ru scam spread?
Links to Tinyurl2.ru appear to be spread via messaging services like WhatsApp and Telegram. Users may receive messages with links from random numbers as well as their contacts. The scam invites users to share the link with their contacts so that is how it may be spreading.
Users may also be redirected to Tinyurl2.ru scams if they visit questionable websites or if their computers are infected with adware. Plenty of websites randomly redirect users, especially sites that have pornographic or pirated content. Fortunately, these random redirects are easily preventable with a good adblocker program.
If the redirects are more regular and seemingly come out of nowhere, users’ computers may be infected with adware. Adware is a rather minor but very irritating infection. It usually sneaks into users’ computers via the software bundling method. This is an installation method often used by infections like adware and browser hijackers because it essentially allows them to install without explicit permission from users. They come attached as extra offers to free programs. Without requiring users’ permission, these offers are permitted to install automatically along with the programs to which they are added. The method is quite frowned upon for obvious reasons, and programs that use it are often flagged as potential threats by anti-virus programs.
As long as users pay attention while installing free software, it’s simple to prevent unwanted installations. The most important thing is to select Advanced or Custom settings when given the option during installation. Even though the installation window will advise using Default settings, these settings will hide the offers and permit them to install automatically. If users select Advanced settings, all offers will be displayed. Users would also have the option to uncheck any offers they don’t want. It’s always recommended to deselect all offers, even if they seem useful initially. By allowing these installations, users would end up filling their computers with junk programs. It’s also much easier to deselect a few boxes than it is to remove adware and hijacker infections once they’ve been fully installed.
Tinyurl2.ru scam removal
To avoid falling for scams or becoming victims of phishing attacks, users should be very cautious with unsolicited links sent by both unknown and known senders. Users can check whether links are safe by putting them in VirusTotal. If links are dangerous to click on, the results would clearly show that. For example, Tinyurl2.ru is detected as a malicious/phishing site by multiple anti-virus programs, including BitDefender and Kaspersky.
It may also be a good idea for users to scan their computers with anti-virus software to check for an adware infection. This is particularly applicable to users who are redirected to Tinyurl2.ru seemingly without any obvious trigger. If adware is the issue, only removing it would stop the random redirects. Users should also install an adblocker to block redirects.
If cybercriminals were able to successfully phish users’ personal and financial information, there’s not much that can be done. Users should contact their banks to cancel any exposed payment cards, as well as reverse any potentially fraudulent transactions.
Users should also be very cautious in the future if their personal information has been phished. Exposed personal information can be used to perform more sophisticated scams.
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