Gizmodo has uncovered almost two dozen complaints to the FTC over websites posing as Canon scamming them out of hundreds or thousands of dollars. New printer users are a fairly easy target because almost everybody who has a computer has a printer, not just photographers, and the hassles of setting them up and keeping them running smoothly aren’t exactly a secret, to the point of ridicule in popular culture.

So, people often need help setting them up or dealing with issues when they arise. This is what the scammers are taking advantage of, and more specifically, users looking for drivers for their shiny new printer. According to the report, the scam exploits an issue whereby Canon’s official website often seems to be down (although that’s not an issue I’ve seen personally), forcing users to Google alternate download locations.

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