Solutions overview
Account take over (ATO)
Digital Impersonation
Credit card data theft
SEO poisoning
Credential stuffing
For security teams
For fraud/risk teams
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The MemcycoFM Show: Episode 15
The MemcycoFM Show
Why You Should Watch
Remote access scams are social engineering attacks where fraudsters convince users to install or open remote desktop tools like TeamViewer or AnyDesk. Once inside, they hijack login flows, harvest credentials, and often bypass MFA, opening a hidden path to account takeover (ATO). These scams are rising fast, exploiting customer trust and evading traditional fraud controls.
Security teams may rely on trusted device signals, MFA success, and login hygiene to flag risk, but remote access scams exploit all three. These scams hijack the user’s own device and session, turning legitimate logins into attack vectors.
What Are Remote Access Scams?
Remote access scams are a type of tech-support or impersonation fraud in which criminals convince victims to give remote access to their device. Once connected, attackers can observe or manipulate browser activity, intercept login credentials, and trick users into handing over MFA codes, often leading to silent account takeover.
Remote Access Scam Loss Trends
2023–2025 Trends by Region: In the United States, total online-crime losses reported to the FBI reached $12.5B in 2023 and $16.6B in 2024, a 33% increase YoY. Tech-support and customer impersonation scams were cited as key vectors – many involving remote access tools.
How Remote Access Scams Work
Attackers use a combination of social engineering and remote access tools. A typical anatomy? Initial contact, tooling step, guided actions, cleanup. Often posing as bank or tech support, using common pretexts including compromise alerts, refund errors, urgent identity verifications.
Why Remote Access Scams Bypass Traditional Detection Methods
Many teams depend on perimeter checks and basic behavioral signals. Remote access scams sidestep them in three ways:
- User-assisted bypass of MFA. The victim supplies the second factor, so the login appears legitimate.
- Trusted device signals. Because the attacker controls the victim’s session directly, IP or device fingerprint can look normal while session behavior is off.
- Credential theft with no failed login attempts to trigger alerts. Attackers may harvest credentials for later replay, minimizing failed attempts that would trigger rate-based rules.
