Online retail giant Amazon (AMZN) has a great source of income in its Prime customers, to the point where it even named its streaming service after them. But those customers also represented a big potential win for hackers, and now, Amazon is warning of an attack aimed at 220 million Prime customers. This is, oddly, not a particular concern to shareholders, as Amazon stock actually gained fractionally in Thursday afternoon’s trading.
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New reports note that “scammers are impersonating Amazon in a Prime membership scam.” The scam appears to be attacking users via both phone call and email, and is warning Prime customers that rates on Prime are about to rise. There is also a “cancel subscription” button included in the email contact. But actually using this cancel button would, ultimately, lead to account credential theft.
The good news here is that avoiding this scam is actually fairly easy; simply do not click links in email messages pertaining to Amazon Prime, or answer phone calls from said scammers. Amazon also encouraged users to only access Amazon through their web browser or through the mobile app. It also recommended setting up two-factor authentication, which is easier said than done for some users. Still, for those who have smartphones and the skill and willingness to use them, it is one more level of protection.
Why SpaceX, Anyway?
And, with the launch of the latest round of Project Kuiper satellites in play—despite some concerns that the weather might have hampered the launch—some now wonder why Amazon is turning to SpaceX for its launches. Amazon had spread around some of its launch contracts, including to the United Launch Alliance and even to Jeff Bezos‘ own Blue Origin.
Given that SpaceX is kind of an Amazon competitor, and Starlink is likewise a competitor to Project Kuiper, this is a valid question. But as it turns out, timing was a problem. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) required at least half of Project Kuiper’s satellite constellation be aloft by July 2026. And with the ULA and even Blue Origin running into delays, Amazon needed satellites in orbit. Thus, it turned to SpaceX, who was available, and ready.
Is Amazon a Good Long-Term Investment?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on AMZN stock based on 44 Buys and one Hold assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 21.46% rally in its share price over the past year, the average AMZN price target of $251.44 per share implies 12.45% upside potential.
