Barbie Movie Scams: How scammers are ‘using’ Barbie movie to trick Indians – Times of India

Greta Gerwig’s Barbie has made its debut on the big screen. The movie has been a runaway success, grossing $182 million over the weekend. Little surprising that scammers are duping netizens cashing in on the movie’s craze. Researchers from McAfeehave discovered a slew of new online scams related to the Barbie movie. The company has asked internet users to be extra careful while searching for ‘Barbie’-related items online.India is reported to be amongst the top three countries hit by such scams.

The scams that have cropped up online include bogus dubbed downloads/videos of the film that inject malware. There are also fake videos/emails offering free tickets. Scammers are using these links to steal personal info with spyware. Barbie movie fans can steer clear of these attacks if they know what to look for. Here are some scams that McAfee researchers have discovered.
Barbie fake download scams

In India, McAfee has seen several examples of malicious campaigns that attempt to trick victims into downloading the “Barbie” movie in different languages. By clicking the link, it prompts victims to download a .zip file, which is packed with malware.

Barbie-related files with viruses
In just the last three weeks, McAfee has seen a hundred new instances of malware that have Barbie-related filenames. While the majority are in the United States (37%), researchers have also seen instances worldwide with 6% in Australia, 5% in both the UK and India, and 3% in France, Japan and Ireland.

Fake Barbie videos
McAfee researchers have also discovered several fake and malicious videos that tempt consumers with Barbie tickets by downloading a file that is loaded with malware. This malware known as “Redline Stealer” then siphons personal information, login details and more from devices.

Sharing personal and financial information with these scam sites leads to identity theft and fraud. Scammers might commit these follow-on crimes themselves and they might post the stolen information for resale on dark web marketplaces as well, putting movie fans at risk.