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Beware of the scam...

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There's a scam going around where people are receiving emails claiming their account has been accessed and validation is required by the customer...I've had everyone from PayPal (which I hardly use) to Wells Fargo who I have no account with send me emails. The catch is to get you to give your account info and credit card pin number (actually that's the smoking gun that made me question the validity of the email). You may have legitimate accounts with companies like Amazon.com but beware of these emails that will send you to a non-secure website asking you to enter in your personal finance info. I've seen this scam with a few of my friends as well, it looks really legit but it's not...


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Guest Ozark Dogfighter

Yep, also received emails of the same nature from Earthlink and eBay. If you feel it may be legit, call the company first (using a known phone number, NOT one listed in the suspicious email) and get things set straight.Of course, if you don't even have an account with the company in question, then the only necessary action is to delete it. :)-Jeremy BurchThe Ozark DogfighterHappy Flying!Pilot-The friction locks are causing the throttle levers to stick.Mechanic- Umm, that's what they're there for...

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Yes, its called fishing and it is one of the most common forms of identity theft. Don't ever give any personal information or account information to someone that requests it online, by mail or over the phone. As Jeremy said, always contact the company on your own using a known phone number.I have had my identity stolen resulting in over $100,000 in losses to the companies involved - yes I cleared my name in all cases but I am very lucky.I am also suspicious about posting personal information on the net. A first name, last name and birth date can help a thief quite a bit. One more piece of the puzzle (SSN, Mothers maiden name, drivers license number, city of birth...) can result in another you running around somewhere spending money like crazy. Some sites ask you your birth date so thay can post a happy birthday greeting - don't give it out. If you do, never post your last name or where you live.


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Guest DK8290

I get several with paypal or ebay topics in them each day arggg!Recently I've seen an interesting one though. It appears to be from an ebay buyer and in it the person says something like "I'd like to finish the transaction for this item I was the high bidder on. There is a link to it which goes to a fake ebay sign-in page. Since I'm a seller , I'm likely to click the link and it would be a huge mistake to sign in thinking you were at ebay ( never sign in anywhere from a linked page from an email and always check the address for "https" and not "http")

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Besides any official e-mails or calls will include your name not Dear sir.....XP Home SP2Asus P4P800-SE Intel 3.0GHZDDR 400 D/C 4x512MBLeadtek 6800GT 256MB (77.72)SB AudigyCH Products Yoke/Pedals USBSee you in the fence...CYYZ

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Guest iiMiller

Buying a shredder for home use is now also a must. Miller

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Technically, it's "phishing" :(Pronounced fishing, though..... :)It's unfortunate that the world has come to the point where our own identities aren't even safe anymore....


StoneC0ld_zps439869f4.png

Declared weather:  FSX: ASN / FS9: ASE

 

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Preferrably the cross-cut kind... Even harder to tape/glue the shreds back together that way... :)If you have access to a legal fireplace or fire pit, could always burn sensitive documents as well..... :( Pretty hard to reconstruct the documents from ashes... :(


StoneC0ld_zps439869f4.png

Declared weather:  FSX: ASN / FS9: ASE

 

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Guest Toni Rauch

If you're in the U.K., e-bay will investigate reported 'scam' mail.They ask you to simply forward the entire e-mail you received to:spoof@ebay.co.ukI think Paypal also have a similar link.Toni.

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Guest

Getting about a dozen of those a day and have for the last several years, pertaining to be from all kinds of banks and online services.I've no account at any of them of course :)

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Guest ssurjap

What I find amazing is that they send it to an e-mail that I have never registered with paypal or ebay.One stupid idiot even included his url in addition to the "company's" URL.

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Guest

Well, they have no way to find out who really has an account with those companies.They just leech list of email addresses from usenet or more often buy them from spammers, and bombard every address on that list.

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I just got a fake google gmail one saying i need to confirm my detailsThe message was from admin@google.com , but this was clearly fakeThen the link was an IP with a .pif at the end suggesting a virus would be secretly added to the computerMy catchDelete them all, DONT reply and NEVER give your information over the interned unless you see the lock on the Right hand side.

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Hi Jeroen."They just leech list of email addresses from usenet or more often buy them from spammers, and bombard every address on that list"Exactly...hence the term "phishing"A good link for education on this topic is:http://www.antiphishing.org/ (Anti-Phishing Working Group")From their main page...**********What is Phishing and Pharming?Phishing attacks use both social engineering and technical subterfuge to steal consumers' personal identity data and financial account credentials. Social-engineering schemes use 'spoofed' e-mails to lead consumers to counterfeit websites designed to trick recipients into divulging financial data such as credit card numbers, account usernames, passwords and social security numbers. Hijacking brand names of banks, e-retailers and credit card companies, phishers often convince recipients to respond. Technical subterfuge schemes plant crimeware onto PCs to steal credentials directly, often using Trojan keylogger spyware. Pharming crimeware misdirects users to fraudulent sites or proxy servers, typically through DNS hijacking or poisoning.**********Cheers,bt

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Guest

yah, they phish for information by throwing out a million lures into a pot of random email addresses.I stopped reporting them, too much work tracing them down when nothing's done with the information after you send it in to law enforcement or ISPs.

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