A pirated version of an anti-terrorism game made for Windows mobile phones is at the center of a new scam wringing cash out of unwitting victims in the UK. Hidden code within the game silently dials phone numbers in the Antarctic, which can cost upwards of £4.25 ($6.19 US) per minute.
Although online con men and spam artists continue to pester our e-lives with promises of money, fame or other inappropriate guarantees, computer scams have an extremely low success rate. Researchers suggest that for every 350 million messages, spammers receive 28 responses, according to the BBC.
Since mobile phones lack the same protection found on computers they have become prime targets for grifters, seeing a threat growth of more than 200% in three years, suggests research by Kasperksy Labs. The penguin-calling version of the game was discovered in April but continues to claim victims as it has been added to multiple websites offering Windows mobile games.