Email Phishing Scams
What Are Email Phishing Scams?
Email phishing scams are messages sent to you as a fake email. They are usually in the attempt of obtaining personal information from you. This includes banking information, credit card numbers and passwords. The purpose of these emails is to steal your money and identity.
How Do They Do It?
Phishing emails often offer you something or warn you from danger and includes a link or downloadable file. Never click or download on content from a phishing email. This could cause many issues on your computer!
Even though it can sometimes be quite difficult, it is possible to identify email scams. If you look for clues (provided below), you will learn how to identify phishing emails and delete them immediately.
How To Identify An Email Phishing Scam
Check The Attachment
Check the attached file name before you download it onto your computer.
Link To A Website
Phishing emails can also include a clickable link to take you to another website. Often these links ask you to provide personal information such as bank account details. Please do not provide these websites with any of your personal information.
Check For Spelling Mistakes
Phishing emails often contain spelling mistakes and poor grammar. Please check for this before clicking on any links or downloading attached files. These emails are also often addressed to you generally and do not use your proper name.
Check Who Signed The Message
Scam emails do not often provide the sender’s name, organisation or contact information. Check for messages with vague contact information such as customer support as these are not real emails.
Who Has The Email Come From?
A phishing email can often deceive you by making their email seem to come from one of your contacts in your email address book. These are more difficult to notice as scam emails. You may need to take a moment to double-check all emails you receive and who they are from.
Phishing emails also copy business’ logos and contain links to websites closely replicating a business to look genuine to the email receiver. This is done by using a URL that is very similar to the real business’ web address. As this is difficult to spot, it is very important to always check before clicking on the link.
Email With Lots Of Text In Caps
As phishing emails try to appeal to people emotions, they often use caps letter to attract your attention. This includes also the overuse of exclamation marks such as DANGER! WARNING! Or URGENT!
What Should You Do?
Computer Security Updates
Install and keep up to date security software on your computer. You may want to consider turning on automatic updates to ensure you are regularly keeping your computer safe. It is always important to ensure that your computer’s browser is current.
Internet Banking
Avoid using public computers or public networks when using Internet banking. It is possible that spyware and key loggers may be on these machines and can access your personal information. When doing Internet banking, always check the last sign in date to make sure that this was you accessing your bank details. Also, check your bank statements to ensure there are no unusual or unauthorised transactions from your account.
Online banking can be a security risk when using remote access. It is always very important that you have a strong password. Using a wireless network can also create a bigger security risk when doing online banking.
Legitimate businesses would never ask you to provide personal or bank information in an email or over the phone. Do not ever provide your information in this way.
If, in the case that you have provided your bank account information to scammers through a phishing email, it is important that you immediately contact your financial institution. They can freeze your account and make necessary changes to ensure no one has access to your banking account.
Online Shopping
When shopping on the Internet, it is very important to only use trusted and well-known websites to avoid scams and losing your money.
General
If you are unsure about whether an email is legitimate, please check with your service provider or bank to confirm the email. Do not call any of the provided numbers on the email. Instead, look for the business contact number online from their website.
Make sure that all your passwords are strong, and you change them regularly. If possible, do not save your passwords on your computer as anyone who can access your computer will then have access to all the websites you have a saved password for.
Never click on any links in a spam email or open any files as this could cause harm to your computer.
If a telephone number is provided in a spam email, do not call this number. If you would like to call a business regarding the email, find their contact information on their website online.
Inform family friends and colleagues about email phishing scams to help protect them.
What Are Some Common Examples Of Phishing Emails?
Bank Employee Scam
If you work in a financial institution, you are at more of a risk of being targeted in phishing scams. Scammers use bank terminology and steal login information to convince finance employees to Make Money Transfers Overseas.
Classic Pyramids Scheme Scam
This scam includes sending money by mail to the person at the top of the list and then being told to add your name to the bottom. As the list is updated, you assume your name will reach the top of the list. However, as this is a scam – your name never reaches the top of the list and you have lost money.
Disaster Relief Scam
These scam emails include scammers setting up a fake charity or pretending to be from an existing charity and asking for donations. This usually occurs after a recent disaster has occurred to make the email seem more legitimate.
Hit Man Scam
Scammers regularly send emails to warn people that to prevent being assassinated, they are required to buy a security alarm connected to Agent Bauer of the Intelligence Bureau. This is yet another scam to steal your money.
Loan Modification Scam
These scam emails offer homeowners lower interest rates and payments, and hence entice people without making them think it is a phishing email. The “stock owners” then send emails about selling underperforming stocks, and the associated tax payments required for the process to go through are sent to the scammers.
Lottery Scam
Emails are sent to you claiming that you have won a large amount of money in a recent lottery. The scam is the processing fee you are required to pay before you can collect your winnings.
Nigerian Prince Scam
Nigerian scammers lure you with international lotteries and get-rich schemes helping deposed dictators transfer secret cash from their Swiss bank accounts. You are asked in these emails to send money to the scammers.
Nigerian Wealth Scam
This scam asks you to pay legal costs so that an estate can be free. You will supposedly be more than compensated once the inheritance is made available; however, this is just to acquire your money.
Pre-Approved Loan Scam
These emails offer pre-approved loans, but not before paying an up-front fee. As this is a scam, you would not receive the loan but would lose money if you pay the fee.
Russian Girl Scam
These emails usually include attractive Eastern European women of which whom you have connected with on a social networking site. The lady wishes to come visits you but needs money for the ticket. Therefore, you are encouraged to provide money and/or credit card information.
Standard Traveller Scam
These common emails claim that your friend was robbed while travelling overseas. They ask you to send them money immediately so that they can get home safely. This is another phishing email to steal your money by making you feel vulnerable and guilty.
Travel Deals Too Good To Be True
This popular scam offers amazing travel deals in an attempt of stealing your money. They advertise great offers for a short period only to encourage you to quickly make a purchase.
Urgent Messages From A Bank Or Government Agency
This scam includes scammers pretending to be a bank or part of the government asking to report scam emails on their website. However, these links often include malware that is dangerous to your computer.
Emails also come from scammers impersonating FBI officials or members of the IRS stating that you must pay them immediately or you will be fined/incarcerated.
Work At Home Scam
These scammers collect contact information from resume websites and contact you with downloadable software programs to complete a new job. This then includes a payment to the scammers that you are expected to pay.
This blog was provided to you by the technicians at Affordable Computer Repairs and Service. Contact us today on 3397 1215 or 0409 974 707 for expert computer repairs and IT services.
