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Internet scammers
casting about for people’s financial information have a new
way to lure unsuspecting victims: They go “phishing.”
Phishing is a high-tech
scam that uses spam or pop-up messages to deceive you into
disclosing your credit card numbers, bank account information,
Social Security number, passwords, or other sensitive
information.
Here are
some of the phishing emails that we've seen:
- AOL
- Charter
One Bank
- Citi
or Citibank
- US
Bank
- e-Bay
Security
- MBNA
Bank Services
- PayPal
Account Review Team or PayPal Account Alert
- Regions
Bank
- SmithBarney
- Sun
Trust or Sun Trust Bank
- US
Bank
- Washington
Mutual
- Yahoo!
PayDirect User
Click
here for a sample phishing email.
According to the
Federal Trade Commission (FTC), phishers send an email or pop-up
message that claims to be from a business or organization that
you deal with – for example, your Internet service provider
(ISP), bank, online payment service, or even a government
agency. The message usually says that you need to “update”
or “validate” your account information. It might threaten
some dire consequence if you don’t respond. The message
directs you to a Web site that looks just like a legitimate
organization’s site, but it isn’t. The purpose of the bogus
site? To trick you into divulging your personal information so
the operators can steal your identity and run up bills or commit
crimes in your name.
The FTC, the nation’s
consumer protection agency, suggests these tips to help you
avoid getting hooked by a phishing scam:
- If you get an email
or pop-up message that asks for personal or financial
information, do not reply or click on the link in the
message. Legitimate companies don’t ask for this
information via email. If you are concerned about your
account, contact the organization in the email using a
telephone number you know to be genuine, or open a new
Internet browser session and type in the company’s correct
Web address. In any case, don’t cut and paste the link in
the message.
- Don’t email
personal or financial information. Email is not a secure
method of transmitting personal information. If you initiate
a transaction and want to provide your personal or financial
information through an organization’s Web site, look for
indicators that the site is secure, like a lock icon on the
browser’s status bar or a URL for a website that begins
“https:” (the “s” stands for “secure”).
Unfortunately, no indicator is foolproof; some phishers have
forged security icons.
- Review credit card
and bank account statements as soon as you receive them to
determine whether there are any unauthorized charges. If
your statement is late by more than a couple of days, call
your credit card company or bank to confirm your billing
address and account balances.
- Use anti-virus
software and keep it up to date. Some phishing emails
contain software that can harm your computer or track your
activities on the Internet without your knowledge.
Anti-virus software and a firewall can protect you from
inadvertently accepting such unwanted files. Anti-virus
software scans incoming communications for troublesome
files. Look for anti-virus software that recognizes current
viruses as well as older ones; that can effectively reverse
the damage; and that updates automatically.
A firewall helps make you invisible on the Internet and
blocks all communications from unauthorized sources. It’s
especially important to run a firewall if you have a
broadband connection. Finally, your operating system (like
Windows or Linux) may offer free software “patches” to
close holes in the system that hackers or phishers could
exploit.
- Be cautious about
opening any attachment or downloading any files from emails
you receive, regardless of who sent them.
- Report suspicious
activity to the FTC. If you get spam that is phishing for
information, forward it to spam@uce.gov.
If you believe you’ve been scammed, file your complaint at
www.ftc.gov,
and then visit the FTC’s Identity Theft Web site at www.consumer.gov/idtheft
to learn how to minimize your risk of damage from ID theft.
Visit www.ftc.gov/spam
to learn other ways to avoid email scams and deal with
deceptive spam.
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The FTC works for the
consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business
practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help
consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint
or to get free
information on consumer issues, visit www.ftc.gov
or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY:
1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity
theft, and other fraud-related complaints into Consumer
Sentinel, a secure, online database available to hundreds of
civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and
abroad.
Reprinted
courtesy of the Federal
Trade Commission
Other Phishing
Resources:
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