Fortnite is available on many platforms, especially Android. However, many young people search for Fortnite in their app stores to no avail. This is because many phones and tablets do not have enough power to move the game with ease, so it may be the case that they do not see the video game in the Google Play Store. Next, what many minors usually do is search “download Fortnite” . And unfortunately, it is very likely that many of the results end up hiding a whole scam.
The subscription payment scam
The subscription payment scam is very old, but it is being renewed as new fashionable products come out. The modus operandi is always the same: a group of scammers create a website where they promise us that we can download something. They then ask us to enter our phone number , where they will send a message with a confirmation code. Once the process is done, in addition to not keeping their word, they will have cast us a paid subscription , which will be billed through our operator .
There are many types of scams of this type, and the prices of these empty subscriptions are also varied. They can give us a monthly, weekly or even daily receipt. This is the method used by Game Zentral , a “service” in which many minors end up falling when they seek to download a Fortnite .apk or some trick for the video game.
Fake app stores: Game Zentral’s door
Many of the subscription payment scams target children . They know that minors are not going to read the fine print of any contract and cheating them is a piece of cake for them. How? Well, creating fake app stores . Some of them are an exact copy of the Google Play Store, although there are also clone stores of the iOS App Store looking for the same type of victims.
In this way, when a minor lands on one of these websites and clicks on “Install” , instead of obtaining the download, they are forwarded to a second website. The scam has just started , as this second portal will tell us to share a message on WhatsApp with 3 of our contacts in order to complete the download. The screen will not let us advance until we have completed the process. Our WhatsApp contacts will receive a message with the text “DOWNLOAD NOW FORTNITE ON ANY ANDROID” along with a link to a website to continue making the scam viral.
[ATTENTION] They are using Fortnite to FOOL thousands of kids.
The mechanics that follow is the following:1) You will receive a message from a friend via WhatsApp:
DOWNLOAD FORTNITE NOW ON ANY ANDROID + a link to: https://t.co/caHcL6OpfS
Take to this page pic.twitter.com/hs3sr3S7NQ
– Mara Turing (@MaraTuring) May 27, 2020
Then, after sending the third link, we will be redirected to Game Zentral , which is allegedly a subscription service that offers quality guides and tips. A somewhat dubious website, by the way. An image of Fortnite will appear along with a dialog box to enter our phone number . Many may think that this is finally the final step to download the game, however, it is the materialization of the scam. Once the number has been entered, Game Zentral will send us a confirmation SMS with a code. By entering it on the web and pressing the “continue” button, Game Zentral will begin to charge us 3.99 euros per week through our phone bill , that is, 15.96 euros per month. Almost the price we would pay for a monthly Netflix membership in 4K resolution.
If we access the web , either with the mobile phone or with our computer from a Wi-Fi connection , a pop-up will block our access telling us that we must access the web with a 4G connection. From the PC it is possible to circumvent this system and access the source code of the page to be able to read the guides. There is content from most successful video games, such as Warzone , Call of Duty: Vanguard , Valorant, or even a guide to getting the perfect island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons . However, they are empty content , with almost no relevant information for the user. Its only function is that we enter our telephone number to proceed to pass us a weekly receipt.
How to unsubscribe from Game Zentral?
If you are affected by this problem, there are several ways to unsubscribe from Game Zentral:
• By clicking on the ‘Cancel’ button when you access the portal from your mobile.
• By calling the customer service telephone number 900264441 and following the cancellation processing instructions.
• Sending an e-mail to es@digitalmindsmktg.com requesting the cancellation.
How can I avoid a scam like Game Zentral?
Obviously, we are talking about Game Zentral, but there are hundreds of scams of this type on the Internet , so it will be easy for our children to fall without realizing it in one of these networks. In addition, not all of them are going to make it easy for us to process the cancellation. To avoid this type of situation, we recommend that you carry out the following procedures :
- Do not download anything outside of the Google Play Store : the Google store, integrated into our Android system, is a secure ecosystem in terms of content downloads. It’s the only Android app repository we can trust.
- Block the Unknown Sources option in Android Settings . This function prevents you from installing any APK (Android executable) from outside the Play Store. By default it is disabled, but if it is enabled in your terminal, you must go to Settings> Security> Device Management> Unknown Sources and uncheck this option. Finally, you should establish some type of security or parental control to prevent your children from manipulating this parameter.
- Deactivate third-party payments on your operator : this is the only way to be protected against a subscription payment scam.
How to disable payments to third parties
If you have managed to sneak a scam of this type, you should know that you can nip the problem in the bud by preventing payments to third parties from your mobile operator. This service is activated by default in most operators, and can be deactivated to avoid future scares in our telephone bill.
The easiest way to deactivate payments to third parties is to call our operator by phone and ask the agent who assists us. We can also go to the physical store of our operator and request it there. They will solve the problem in a matter of minutes, since it is a procedure that they usually do on a daily basis. Still, we can do the procedure online easily.
Deactivate payments to third parties in Movistar
To unsubscribe from an active subscription, go to the Movistar website and identify yourself. Then go to the Subscriptions section and click on “unsubscribe” to delete a service. They will send you an SMS to confirm the process. Next, you should complete the operation by filling in the Online Payment Form. However, you can do the last step by calling 1004 and commenting the problem to one of the Telefónica agents.
Deactivate payments to third parties in Orange
To deactivate Orange Pay , you must access the Orange customer area or the mobile app. In your line settings, you can access Orange Pay and deactivate “third party services”.
Disable payments to third parties in Vodafone
Access My Vodafone and go to the Options> Third party payments section. From there you will have to deactivate the option ” Allow payments to content portals” , which is responsible for managing this type of subscription and Premium SMS services.
