I am consistently getting emails from banks that I don’t belong to, eBay, PayPal and other internet sites saying that there is something wrong with my account and could I please click on the following link to verify my information or some other such BS. The trouble is that usually these emails are professionally done and really look legit.
Do not be fooled, because if you click on the link you would be handing over to the scam artist all of your personal information. This type of scam is known as ‘phising’ and is sent out daily to millions of people. A more in depth definition of ‘phishing’ is given by Wikipedia and it says that ‘phising’;
is an attempt to criminally and fraudulently acquire sensitive information, such as usernames, passwords and credit card details, by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication. eBay, PayPal and online banks are common targets. Phishing is typically carried out by email or instant messaging,[1] and often directs users to enter details at a website, although phone contact has also been used.[2] Phishing is an example of social engineering techniques used to fool users.[3] Attempts to deal with the growing number of reported phishing incidents include legislation, user training, public awareness, and technical measures.
I akso found this news video of one particular scam artist who was trying to fool eBay clients into parting with their personal details.
It would be wise to take note of the precautions they listed when checking you emails, especially the one where it says never ever click on any link provided. It would also be wise to go to Spoofstick and download SpoofStick for either Internet Explorer or Firefox to make sure that you are always on a legitimate website.
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6 responses so far ↓
1
Aaron Wakling (Check me out!)
// Feb 2, 2008 at 1:46 am
I found your site on technorati and read a few of your other posts. Keep up the good work. I just added your RSS feed to my Google News Reader. Looking forward to reading more from you.
Aaron Wakling
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2
blogengage (Check me out!)
// Feb 2, 2008 at 11:25 am
I get these e-mails a lot but normally only from paypal! I don’t know why they try and scam me I’m not a retard and can easily tell the difference between paypal and fake paypal e-mails. First of all paypal will NEVER say click this link to update your account! But none the less obviously they are fooling people seeing the fake e-mails continue! Some peopel are so silly to not see thought these e0mails!
Thanks for sharing , cheers,
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3
BS Artist (Check me out!)
// Feb 2, 2008 at 4:32 pm
Yeah, also PayPal also always directs the mail to the name you signed up with, the scam artists never do. It is a shame that so many people fall for this scam though. Thanks for dropping by.
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4
BS Artist (Check me out!)
// Feb 13, 2008 at 9:47 pm
Sorry Aaron that it took so long to reply to your comment, but for some reason it got stuck in the spam filter and I only just managed to dig it out. Thanks for dropping by.
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5
bbrian017 (Check me out!)
// May 22, 2008 at 8:39 pm
It’s funny you mention paypal I get these a lot and they look so real!
bbrian017s last blog post..The Stock Picking Strategy They Don’t Want You To Know About
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6
BS Artist (Check me out!)
// May 22, 2008 at 11:19 pm
There is always a slight defect upon closer study though. One just has to take the time to check it properly.
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