Friday 30 October 2009

Spoof Emails

Is there no end to these Spoof Emails I receive each day?

What is a Spoof Email? Surely you know. Surely you've received them. You haven't? Well, I guess you must be the only one. I'm kind of jealous.

A Spoof email is an email received that pretends to be sent from somewhere else in order to get information from you. They are predominantly, if not totally, sent by fraudsters looking to steal your identity or take over your bank account to extract funds. Some coding will alter or disguise the email address they've originally been sent from.

These fake emails will be made to look like they're from financial institutions such as world banks, but also heavily include PayPal and eBay. If you suspect a Spoof email regarding the last two you should forward them either to Spoof@ebay.com or Spoof@PayPal.com.

Typically the Spoof email will announce some sort of minor or major disaster that needs your attention. There will be a link for you to click to be taken to the site...

DON'T CLICK IT, YOU WILL BE TAKEN TO A DUMMY SITE THE FRAUDSTER HAS SET UP. THEY WANT YOU TO TYPE IN YOUR USER NAME AND PASSWORD SO THEY CAN STEAL THEM.

Remember: No financial institution will ever send you an email with a link to click in it that takes you to a sign on screen.

How the Fraudsters obtrain your email address in the first place is one of heated debate, but presumably it must have been leaked from somewhere. Data Protection is supposed to protect all your details given to any company. They are not supposed to give them out.

Be careful. Some of the Spoof emails are a lot more sophisticated than others. Some are riddled with spelling errors, some are very professional. Remember... never click on email links. Instead, go directly to the Financial Institutions website and check your account status there or phone them.

Spoof emails I have received today are from three banks I have no account with and are even based in a different country. Desperate stuff.

Always be vigilant and don't let the Fraudsters win.




jenkin7 - Giftware & Collectables
www.jenkin7 - www.jenkin7.com
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