 Haha, I'm the advertising manager here at Epic Games. It's a program file. I wonder what would happen if I just clicked on it. Oh. This video was sponsored by the wonderful people over at NordVPN. More info on that later. Oh. I am so glad that I am able to stand here in this small setting room with a lemonade that I'll never drink. Speaking with you all today. Actually, you know what? This story needs a darker tone. A little dramatic. Sure. But if things had gone different recently, my entire channel could have been compromised. Or worse, I could have lost access to everything I own, including my bank account. This could have been so serious. To clear things up, I almost got completely fooled by an email scammer. To be fair though, their tactics were very new to me. I'd never seen anything so specifically targeted. So right from the beginning, my guard was down. I was kicking back on a weekend afternoon, enjoying a snack when I received a notification. Oh. What's this? Hello, dear Jelly Jess. Oh, wow. No way. It was Epic Games. Like, you know, Fortnite. I'm the advertising manager here at Epic Games. Here's proof. Check this out. Yeah. Anyway, our new application, MetaHumanCreator, is in the works. And we'd love to collaborate with you on some delectable promotional content to post on your channel. Honestly, I'd never heard of this before. So I made sure to check out what the game was all about in the form of YouTube previews. It looked pretty impressive. I'll be sending you the beta version of the game, which will allow you to create some entertaining content for the review. I was on board. Excited. I did a quick check to see what email address sent this to me in case it was just a random Gmail account or something. But no, it said, at MetaHuman at the end of it. At a glance, I was satisfied. This was my first big mistake. It should have said something less weirdly specific. I confirmed with a nice man. I'm really nice, trust me. That I was interested and available to begin working on this promotion ASAP. I swapped my WhatsApp details with them, which luckily, I had a typo in my phone number so they weren't given my real contact just by a stroke of luck. However, even attempting to give them my phone number was another big mistake. I mistakenly gave them the wrong phone number so we continued our conversation over email. This is where things get interesting. I gave them a price and an estimated completion date and there was absolutely no pushback whatsoever. Has any brand ever accepted an asking price and a deadline without even attempting to negotiate? Usually they have a campaign running and therefore have their own deadlines to meet. This was the first noticeable red flag. Then they sent over several links, one of them being the demo version for the upcoming game. The other being an example video of the promo they'd like me to create for them. I downloaded only the example video to begin with, which in its title had a file extension MP4, a common video type. When downloaded to my desktop, it had an unfamiliar icon for a typical video file. At this point, I didn't have any real doubts about this opportunity, but the odd looking file was the next red flag. Hmm, I wonder what would happen if I just clicked on it. With tense hesitation, I hovered my mouse over it. The preview information says that the file type wasn't actually an MP4, but rather a screensaver file type disguised as an MP4. Luckily I didn't drug this off though and impulsively double clicked to view it. Instead, I turned to Google, trying to find a way to convert it to a normal video file so I didn't have to open this obscure video type. What I found made my heart sink into my chest. It said that converting the file is impossible because the screensaver file is technically a type of executable file similar to an EXE file. In other words, it's a program file. Why would an example video be sent as its own program? My paranoia was at a painful level by now, the reality fully sinking in all at once. Had I impulsively opened it to begin with or had my computer not changed its icon like it did, this would have been my third and final mistake. It would have been all over. Instead of blocking them and distancing myself suddenly, I decided to keep my cool and email them back. On the off chance that this was still a real sponsorship, I requested the example video from them again, but in the MP4 format it was disguised as or better yet, a link to view it unlisted on YouTube or Vimeo. Surely if it was just a video example, this would be easily possible. The response? A false explanation as to why it's different because it's locked, along with the instructions to just double click it. Like honestly, it's not that hard, bro. Just tap, tap, come on. It's easy, just do it. Another giant red flag. Oh God, oh God. Ah! I asked about a contract as I didn't see any mention of one prior and to my surprise, they were totally okay with the idea. Apart from this convenient detail. In order to link the contract with your review, we'll need the unique reviewer code found on screen in the beta version I've sent you. So you know, click, click, chop, chop. In theory, this makes sense and would be easy to fall for had there not been all these red flags earlier, but with all this context in place, I just didn't believe it. Although it's important to mention that even at this point in my head, I still thought that there was a chance that this may be legit. After all, I hadn't opened and seen the files for myself, right? Maybe the demo would operate and would be enjoyable to play. And maybe, had I just double clicked the example video, all I would have been met with was a creator sponsorship integration to draw inspiration from. But I've learned to trust my instincts and they were telling me that as easy as checking the files myself would be, I could seriously regret it if things weren't as sincere as I hoped. In fact, it's probably worth noting right here that you should not give things multiple chances if they present even one red flag. After the first sus moment, I should have dipped. I did some more research, looking around for safe ways to scan files for malicious content or a safe space separate from my computer where I could open the files and reveal what's inside. I have antivirus software installed, of course, but I didn't get any pop-ups saying I downloaded suspicious files. You betrayed me, bro. Eventually, I came across something called Windows Sandbox. This is a feature on Microsoft Windows where you can open a virtual operating system, open and test shady files without it technically being on your main operating system. Not sure how it all works, but oh boy, I am happy it does. Using this tool, I was able to bring the example video, the concerning screensaver file, into a safer place. Alongside this, I downloaded the demo version of the game itself too. I was ready to finally open these files and see if I was being overly cautious or if there was really something to be worried about all along. I extracted the demo and placed it next to the example video. I hovered over them to double check their file types. The example video was indeed a screensaver file and the demo of the game was a .exe as I expected it would be. But then I noticed something. This was meant to be a short video showing a sponsorship example. Now tell me why both of these files are exactly the same size, huh? This was just two ways for me to infect my computer with the same file. I was finally certain that this was in fact not Epic Games and I would not be receiving a brand deal from them. Obviously, out of curiosity and confidence knowing my computer was safe, I double clicked the first file. My cursor loaded, then nothing happened. I tried the second file, same thing. My guess is that once these files are opened, the dangerous content within would be released and begin collecting data and infecting your computer in ways I don't even want to imagine. I closed the sandbox and with it, all traces of these files were destroyed. I say I was certain, but in reality, I needed some sort of closure. Something from the source. I wrote back to them keeping the facade of blind belief. I did what no creator should ever do when trying to land a brand deal. I asked to increase the payment after everything was decided and in the works. Ha ha ha, you know who I asked for? Yeah, well that's not good enough anymore. Can I put that twice in my mouth please and thank you? Ha ha ha. If this really was a legit opportunity, it's safe to say that it was flushed down the drain by now. In my head, their response would give me the closure I was looking for. If they said yes without any hesitation, I would know it was fake. I wasn't sure what I would do if they pushed back the idea. I didn't really think about that. But I was sure this wouldn't occur based on my experiences so far. An hour later, I got a reply back. And wow, this gave me all the confirmation I needed. Hi Jess, no problemo. We have an unlimited budget for this opportunity. Hee hee. An unlimited budget? How was that possible? But more importantly, why would a brand tell the creator that? Yep, get in the toilet. I am so grateful that my instincts kicked in right at the most crucial moment. I was literally two fingertips away from unleashing whatever hell was contained inside these files. Hi Jess, are you in touch? To this day, I have no idea what they really were. But it's clear to me that they were nothing good and I'm better off not knowing. Ugh, YouTubers are so hard to work with. Guys, please take your online security seriously. There are people like this targeting all kinds of people, not just YouTubers. Never click on links that are sent to you from people you don't know and most certainly never download files that are sent to you either. Sometimes though, you won't even be approached directly by people trying to steal your data. But luckily, thanks to the sponsor of today's video, NordVPN, you don't have to worry about that. NordVPN offers protection from online threats and lets you browse the internet truly anonymously. Did you know most places in the world log every single website you visit and keep your information stored for two years or longer? Your private information is often then sold to third parties and exploited for their own gain. Using NordVPN will keep your internet usage completely private so no one will get access to your private information. 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I just want to say a huge thank you to the SeaRubbit for voicing the scammer in today's video. He did such a good job and if you guys haven't checked out his content before, I highly recommend. Thank you all for watching and I'll see you guys next time. My cat just meowed. I hope it didn't pick that up.