Forum Discussion

IowaLen's avatar
IowaLen
Newbie
5 years ago

Amazon Prime Video: Beware of hacking and scams

I am posting because I keep getting disconnected from online Roku customer support. Beware of hacking and scams. I started Roku and pressed Amazon Prime.

Instead of Amazon prime there was a screen that looked liked AP telling me I needed to confirm the account. It gave a code and an email to send the code. That connected to scammers who claimed they were from Amazon, people had hacked into and made purchases from my account., etc. They were imposters and wanted me to buy Google Play cards and give them the code. 

How did this happen through Roku? I am not sure I can trust the device or links.

5 Replies

  • Strega's avatar
    Strega
    Roku Guru
    5 years ago

    Basically, a channel like amazon prime will say go to this_URL and enter this_code.

    Trouble is, lots of people don't go to exactly that URL.  Some type it incorrectly (just look around this Roku forum at the 50 different ways that people type "Roku" – Rocky, Ticki, you name it, someone has typed it that way.)

    Some type it into a search engine, either by going there themselves or use one conveniently built into their browser.

    Some get distracted by a suggestion from an integrated search engine as they start typing.

    Then, once they arrive there, they don't confirm that the domain of the URL actually matches the company they are trying to link to.

    Then, the scams commence.

    By the way, when I look, scam sites are usually right up at the top on Google because they are paid ads.  On the other hand, Bing is way cleaner and the top link is actually Roku.  Whether this is because Bing is better at scammer avoidance or because the scammers haven't thought to buy ads there, I don't know.

  • JS43081's avatar
    JS43081
    Newbie
    3 years ago

    6/15/2022

    Very similar thing just happened to us, but we were directed to stay on the phone w/ "Andrew" and get in car and drive to "amazon store" or kroger, walgreens, or dollar store to get a "security code" to secure our account from the hackers. ALL OF THIS STARTED WITH INFO ON OUR TV VIA ROKU. I hope Roku is looking into this.

  • Box's avatar
    Box
    Newbie
    2 years ago

    When I clicked Amazon Prime to download a screen said to get a code which led to a phone call with a scammer saying he's with Amazon Fraud department and my account was flagged due to hacking. That's when a big, long nightmare began. He (James) had an Indian accent but spoke English very well. I let him remote onto my computer to help me. He got all my info. Almost got my $ but finally after many hours I realized he was a very smooth fraudster. HOW IS ROKU A CHANNEL FOR THIS KIND OF SCAM!! #Amazon 

    • renojim's avatar
      renojim
      Community Streaming Expert
      2 years ago

      Box, you almost certainly typed in the wrong URL or searched for something like "Amazon activation" which led you to the scammer.  I would be very worried about what he did to your computer when he had control of it.