When somebody throws us a challenge, we get ready to tackle it. There is nothing wrong with taking a challenge; however it is not wise when such tests are marked with trickery, and can cause financial losses. We have observed recent messages, where the spammer challenges the recipient to an IQ test. The challenges can be found in the following subject lines:
How smart (or dumb) are you?
Someone Thinks You Are Dumb - Take The Quiz and Prove Them Wrong!
TestUrIQ
Pick Your Brain With This Quiz
By clicking on the URL inside the message, the user is redirected to the page in the graphic below. This page informs the user of the current high IQ score and invites them to take a test. The page also describes the terms of the quiz, and that results will be provided to the user upon completion of a mobile game subscription offer. These terms are placed at the bottom of the page with a small font size.
Next button will start the IQ test with few questions like the one below:
After answering 10 simple questions, the user is asked for their mobile number and service provider. As the website states, this information will be used to send results to the user.
As indicated in the above image, the user should read the “summary terms” at the bottom before they click the NEXT button. For obvious reasons, the terms are in small font size. The terms state the following:
“This is an auto renewing subscription service available to users over 18 for $9.99 per month on <prices of alerts for different service providers and number of alerts that will be sent> Charges will appear on your wireless bill or be deducted from your pre-paid balance. Your phone must have text messaging capability. You must be the owner of this device or have permission from the owner. By signing up for this service and entering your personal PIN Code delivered to the cell phone number supplied by you on this website, you acknowledge that you are agreeing to the full Terms of Use.”
So it means that after the phone number is entered and the next button is clicked, the user automatically subscribes to the SMS alerts and will be charged for this service. The user will be charged $9.99 per month. Since this is an auto renewing subscription service, the deduction will continue unless the user unsubscribes to the service.
As always, we advise that users should avoid submitting any personal information to questionable sites.