By Carl Surran
Remain Wary Of Fake E-mails, FTC Urges Consumers
Winter 2008-09
Online scammers are taking advantage of today’s economic fears. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) urges caution regarding e-mails that look as if they come from a financial institution that recently acquired a consumer’s bank or mortgage company. In fact, these messages may have been sent by scammers “phishing” for personal information – account numbers, passwords, Social Security numbers – to run up bills or commit other crimes in a consumer’s name.
The FTC offers several suggestions to help you avoid getting hooked by a phishing scam, including: Don’t reply to an e-mail or pop-up message that asks for financial information, and don’t click on links in the message; never use e-mail to send personal information of any kind; and review account statements when you receive them to check for unauthorized charges.
Forward suspicious e-mails to spam@uce.gov and to the company impersonated in the phishing e-mail. If you have been scammed, visit www.ftc.gov/idtheft for help.
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