Beware St Patrick’s Day scams!

This Saturday is St Patrick’s Day, and in addition to all the drinking and partying that comes with it people can expect a flurry of emails and social network messages promising to bestow ‘the luck of the Irish’.

However, one security software distributor is warning internet users that while such messages may look harmless, they can contain links that will infect the user’s device with malware.

Geoff Cossey, CEO and managing director of Chillisoft – distributors of the ESET security software brand, among others – says emails or social messages offering links to click or apps to download can result in the user being infected with drive-by malware, possibly resulting in the disclosure of sensitive financial information.

"Cybercriminals... use the good will of the people against them, by quickly trying to scam them whenever the opportunity presents itself,” Cossey says.

"Bring yourself some luck by not clicking on any links, no matter what pots of gold they promise.”