Alert! Microsoft Points scam sweeps Xbox Live
While every major company in the world attempts to bang into your head that they will never ask for your account information sometimes people don't listen.Unfortunately a scam, which appears to have been around for some time, promises free Microsoft points when you log into your .net Passport account. This site, and any site that promises the same, is 100% fake and will only lead to a headache like the reader who sent this in who had 5000 MS points purchased with his credit card.
We know this isn't the first, nor will it be the last, site to attempt to scam you but we hope to echo what you all should already know.
We won't link the site itself, for fear of spreading the scam, but we would like to remind you of a few key things.
- Microsoft will only give points away during official contests that ALWAYS link directly back to a Microsoft site and those contests are always widely reported on X3F, Joystiq and other gaming sites
- Never, no matter what you're promised, log into your account unless on officially sanctioned Xbox sites (Xbox.com, Bungie.net, ForzaMotorsport.net, etc.)
- Never give away your user name and password to anyone and remember Microsoft will never ask for this information
- Never give away your account details, including credit card information and mailing address
Check out our visual guide to spotting fake Microsoft sites used in similar scams. This guide isn't foolproof however, so just steer clear from anything that promises anything!
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Ray @ May 17th 2008 11:38AM
woo! i sent that lol
in other news my account is safe and im waiting 5-10 days for a refund
Exiled Legend @ May 17th 2008 5:53PM
wow only an idiot would fall for this
Feedback @ May 17th 2008 8:48PM
Not something to be proud of...
Ray @ May 17th 2008 8:49PM
lol i guess it isnt, oh well
popozao @ May 17th 2008 9:41PM
Ray; I know you got scammed B4, But I gots da hook up!! Send me ALL your credit card #'s (DONT FOR GET THE SECURITY CODEZ) and I will 150% ****** you will get like, a millllion pointz!!!
Exiled Legend @ Jun 11th 2008 2:39AM
lol
Knight Marquise @ May 18th 2008 10:14AM
Proof positive that adults need to have their genes analyized for the "stupidity factor", and if found, be sterilized.
Then these retarded stories of morons being scammed would stop appearing across the ineternet.
CJJB @ May 17th 2008 11:43AM
Must of been a big enough scam to get blogged about.
Also I remember people requesting account details in exchange for doing the GOW seriously glitch or getting Halo skulls etc. but the guys would just run up a bill and steal your account. :(
Ray @ May 17th 2008 11:49AM
when you enter your info it automatically sends a message to all your friends telling about the site. so id imagine this could be spreading like a wild fire. sadly 4 of my friends fell into trap so that could be another 400 who got the message.
the message is something like "m2af this site is giving away free ms points blah blah blah *insert site url*"
Sinnix @ May 17th 2008 12:26PM
It's also important to note that if you HAVE been caught in this scam you need to tell your credit card company immediately and change you Live ID password ASAP.
Ryan @ May 17th 2008 1:15PM
Seriously... who even falls for these scams anymore?
TheBlahMasta @ May 17th 2008 1:25PM
Umm..Apparently a lot of people if A) it's been blogged about; and B) There are people out there that are doing the scams. If no one was falling for the scams, they wouldn't be made because there would be no point, and they, in the end, would be at a loss with money.
JakubK666 (Ninja Defence Force) @ May 17th 2008 1:30PM
I did once but it was a Windows Live scam and I purposely used my other account.
KingOfGods @ May 17th 2008 1:35PM
Yeah two of my friends on my list fell for this scam. they got a message from someone on their friends list telling them about the site and went to sign up.
It was the time when the COD maps were coming out so they thought they would get the maps for free.
one got his gamertag changed to Xyougotjacked2X and both lost access to their .net accounts because the password and secret question were changed.
After calling and having MS investigate they lost their accounts. MS states their policy is to cancel out the accounts and refund any points and time left on service to a new gamertag.
I think they were both given a 1 year subscription as well.
icedemon @ May 17th 2008 1:39PM
I know MS phishing filter works pretty good. As soon as I went to a site that look like Xbox.com the filter kicked in and I left in a hurry. Some people must be pretty desperate for some MS points.
Sunny @ May 17th 2008 1:47PM
Anyone dumb enough to get caught in these scams don't deserve any sympathy. Seriously.
Ryan @ May 17th 2008 2:43PM
Yeah, I agree... and that's pretty much what I was getting at with my earlier comment. Especially in this day and age when we know so much about all this.
Anonymous @ May 17th 2008 2:13PM
I got a message from an XBL friend advertising this site: --URL DELETED-- I thought i'd check it out and immediately realised it was just a scam. I then decided to enter fake details and entered 'Nice Try' in the password field to annoy the potential scammer. =)
nizzy1115 @ May 17th 2008 2:51PM
You are so original...
Outinthedark @ May 17th 2008 7:12PM
An admin should drop this and ban the IP...
Outinthedark @ May 17th 2008 7:10PM
I had a guy today tell me I knew him from his other account "Dead Shell" which is in fact my other account. He asked about my General achievement "glitch" and asked if I could help.
I replied that the account was mine not his. After a few replies from him saying he's going to hack my account blah blah blah. Douchebags...geeze...he stopped messaging me after about a dozen messages.
Just watch out for people offering "Free MS points" never follow a link and especially never enter your .net info on a site that is not https://
Davis @ May 17th 2008 9:28PM
What's the phone number to ask an MS rep to remove your credit card info from your account?
Chiefette @ Jun 3rd 2008 6:47PM
1800-4myxbox
(1800-469-9269)
Exiled Legend @ May 18th 2008 2:53AM
lol
Eleft @ May 18th 2008 12:29PM
Once I bought 5000ms points at Circuit City on Phoenix, and they were scratched and used :/.
Xboxrulez1985 @ May 18th 2008 4:43PM
Xbox users do......yeah we're pretty dumb!
Chase @ May 19th 2008 8:10AM
Duh.
kyle @ May 22nd 2008 6:56PM
ok seriously, how can people be so blind to the fact that they are falling into scams, if its always being reported due to millions of people falling into it
Chiefette @ Jun 3rd 2008 6:50PM
Haha wow. Why hasn't anyone reported this?!
This article was posted back on MAY 17th!!
I did a quick whois search, found the host of this website and reported it.
It took 2 minutes.
I was shocked that nobody has done that yet.
Anyways, the guy at customer service said that it was definetly a phishing website and he will take, "necessary action" to take the website down.
Stupid phishing websites.
Also, I'd like to add that for everyone that fell for this, keep this in mind: "If it seems to good to be true, then it probably is". Next time, don't give out your information to ANYONE to an account that has a credit card linked to it.