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The Daily Red Flag #044: The stock market that is really a casino
October 28, 2026
THE SCAM These apps let you buy and sell contracts on sports games, elections, even the weather. Prices move up and down like stocks, there are charts and...
The Daily Red Flag #043: The TreasuryDirect email that isn't from TreasuryDirect
October 27, 2026
THE DAILY RED FLAG #043 — October 27, 2026 THE SCAM If you keep savings bonds or I bonds at TreasuryDirect, there is a real change this week: after...
The Daily Red Flag #042: The Microsoft link that leads to a scam site
October 26, 2026
THE SCAM You get an email that looks like an official Microsoft message. It says you need to keep your account credentials up to date, or sign an electronic...
The Daily Red Flag #041: The VA text that isn't from the VA
October 25, 2026
THE SCAM You get a text that looks like it came from the Department of Veterans Affairs. It says there is a problem with your benefits and your payments...
The Daily Red Flag #040: The text that's just your name and a question mark
October 24, 2026
THE SCAM Your phone buzzes with a text from a number you don't recognize. There's no link, no warning about an overdue bill, no threat that your account is...
The Daily Red Flag #039: The FTC call that isn't the FTC
October 23, 2026
THE SCAM Your phone rings, and the caller says he's from the FTC. Bad actors in another country have registered a phone under your name and number and are...
The Daily Red Flag #038: The voter-registration text that's a trap
October 22, 2026
THE DAILY RED FLAG #038 — OCTOBER 22, 2026 One scam, one red flag, one rule. THE SCAM With the midterms twelve days out, the FBI warned on October 15 that...
The Daily Red Flag #037: The update that came with malware inside
October 21, 2026
THE SCAM There's a popular Windows program called AOMEI Backupper that people use to back up their files and clone their hard drives. Between April and July...
The Daily Red Flag #036: The slot machine in your kid's phone
October 20, 2026
THE SCAM Europe's game raters just called it like it is. On October 20, 2026, the Games Rating Authority — the UK administrator of PEGI, the system that...
The Daily Red Flag #035: The government check that looks like a scam
October 19, 2026
THE SCAM For years, scammers told their victims to go to a Walmart counter and wire the money. The grandson supposedly sitting in jail. The sweetheart...
The Daily Red Flag #034: The ChatGPT site that isn't ChatGPT
October 18, 2026
THE SCAM Crooks are building websites that look exactly like ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Perplexity. The pitch: free AI tools that "optimize your ads" and...
The Daily Red Flag #033: The casino that isn't a casino
October 17, 2026
THE SCAM There is a new kind of casino app all over ads and app stores. You never deposit dollars — you buy "Gold Coins," play money. Then the app hands you...
The Daily Red Flag #032: The "Hi Mom, I lost my phone" text
October 16, 2026
THE SCAM A text arrives from an unknown number: "Hi Mom, I lost my phone. This is my new number." Nothing bad happens next. You reply, they reply, the chat...
The Daily Red Flag #031: The 'rescue' company that scammed the victims
October 15, 2026
THE SCAM Someone is being blackmailed with their own private photos — sextortion, the fastest-growing cybercrime aimed at kids and young men. Panic is the...
The Daily Red Flag #030: The factory behind a billion scam messages
October 14, 2026
THE SCAM That unpaid-toll text. The package-delivery notice. The "verify your account" email. A lot of them weren't coming from lone scammers in a basement —...
The Daily Red Flag #029: The calendar invite you never accepted
October 13, 2026
THE SCAM A meeting or a "subscription renewal" notice pops up on your Google Calendar that you never agreed to. It sits right next to your real appointments,...
The Daily Red Flag #028: The free download that steals your passwords
October 12, 2026
THE SCAM You find a tool you need on GitHub — maybe an AI helper or a handy utility — and the page looks perfectly legit. A polished README walks you through...
The Daily Red Flag #027: The urgent security update that steals your wallet
October 11, 2026
THE SCAM A post on the official X account of Coldcard — the company that makes a popular Bitcoin hardware wallet — warned users about a critical security...
The Daily Red Flag #026: The loss that celebrates like a win
October 10, 2026
THE SCAM On a modern multi-line slot machine, or a slot-style game in an app, you are not betting on one line. You are betting small amounts across many...
The Daily Red Flag #025: The Marketplace listing with your name on it
October 9, 2026
THE SCAM A text lands on your phone: "Is this still available for purchase?" Attached is a Facebook Marketplace listing — and the seller's name on it is...
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