Scams like ChatGPT are common on social media; beware!

Image Credit: hackread As OpenAI's chatbot gains popularity, ChatGPT malware and scams increase. When ChatGPT launched in November 2022, undesirable actors exploited its popularity. Several have used fake ChatGPT interfaces to steal money or infect mobile devices. According to Bleeping Computer, hackers are using phishing pages to obtain credit card and banking information from Windows and Android users. Dominic Alvieri discovered chat-gpt-pc. online, a domain that hosted Redline, a data-stealing malware that masquerades as a ChatGPT for Windows desktop download. The ChatGPT-branded site was promoted on a Facebook page as an OpenAI link to trick people into visiting it. Photo Credit: Bleeping Computer Alvieri uncovered bogus ChatGPT apps on Google Play and other third-party Android app shops that may infect smartphones. Additional researchers uncovered software that runs different fraudulent campaigns, supporting the initial assertions. Cyble found chatgpt-go.online sending malware that "steals clipboard contents," including Aurora stealer. Lumma stealer comes from chat-gpt-pc[.]online. Another unknown trojan, openai-pc-pro[.]online. Cyble also linked pay.chatgptftw.com to a credit card-stealing ChatGPT Plus payment page. Cyble says it found over 50 suspicious mobile apps using ChatGPT logo or a confusing name. The research team found them all fraudulent and dangerous to gadgets. ChatGPT1, an SMS-billing fraud program, may steal credit card information. AI Picture has Spynote malware that can "collect call logs, contact lists, SMS, and files" from a device. Photo Credit: The Cyber Express Due to ChatGPT's popularity, OpenAI throttled speeds and access, attracting viruses and scammers. The first fraudulent paid mobile apps hit Apple App and Google Play stores in December 202, but the media didn't notice until mid-January. Mid-February saw the first significant ChatGPT hack. Bad actors created a dark ChatGPT that generates phishing emails and malware programs using the OpenAI GPT-3 API. Telegram powers bots. Since OpenAI launched its $20-per-month ChatGPT Plus tier on February 10, fakes and alternatives seem to be everywhere. The chatbot is still browser-based and only available at chat.openai.com. ChatGPT has no mobile or desktop apps for any OS.