Internet
Scams
Phisher Scams – You may receive an email from
a bank/online service provider/ financial
institution that asks you to click a link and visit
a website in order to provide personal information.
Such an email is more than likely the type of
Internet scam known as "phishing".
A
phisher scam is one in which victims are tricked
into providing personal information such as account
numbers and passwords to what they believe to be a
legitimate company or organization. In order to
carry out this trick, the scammers often create a
"look-a-like" website that is designed to resemble
the target company's official website. Typically,
emails are used as "bait" in order to get the
potential victim to visit the bogus website. Be wary
of any email that asks you to click on a link and
provide sensitive personal information such as
banking details. Information submitted on these
bogus websites is harvested by the scammers and may
then be used to steal funds from the user's accounts
and/or steal the victim's identity.
Most legitimate companies would not request
sensitive information from customers via email. DO
NOT click on the links in these emails. DO NOT
provide any information about yourself. If you have
any doubts at all about the veracity of an email,
contact the company directly.
Nigerian Scams – You may receive an
email/letter/fax that asks for your help to access a
large sum of money in a foreign bank account. The
message says that you will get a percentage of the
funds in exchange for your help.
In
all probability, the message is an example of the
type of scam known as a Nigerian or “419” scam. The
“large sum of money” does not exist. The messages
are an opening gambit designed to draw potential
victims deeper into the scam. Those who initiate a
dialogue with the scammers by replying to the scam
messages will eventually be asked for advance fees
supposedly required to allow the deal to proceed.
They may also become the victims of identity theft.
The scammers use a variety of stories to explain why
they need your help to access the funds.
For example:
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They may claim that
political climate or legal issues preclude them
from accessing funds in a foreign bank account.
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They may claim that
your last name is the same as that of the
deceased person who owned the account and
suggest that you act as the Next of Kin of this
person in order to gain access to the funds.
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They may claim that
a rich merchant, who has a terminal illness,
needs your help to distribute his or her wealth
to charity. |
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If you receive one
of these scam emails, it is important that you
do not respond to it in any way. The scammers
are likely to act upon any response from those
they see as potential victims. |
Lottery Scams – You may receive an
email/letter/fax that claims that you have won a
great deal of money in an international lottery even
though you have never bought a ticket. The email may
claim that your email address was randomly chosen
out of a large pool of addresses as a "winning
entry". Such emails are almost certainly fraudulent.
In some cases, the emails claim to be endorsed by
well-known companies such as Microsoft or include
links to legitimate lottery organization websites.
Any relationships implied by these endorsements and
links will be completely bogus.
There is no lottery and no prize. Those who initiate
a dialogue with the scammers by replying to the
messages will be first asked to provide a great deal
of personal information. Eventually, they will be
asked to send money, ostensibly to cover expenses
associated with delivery of the supposed "winnings".
They may also become the victims of identity theft.
DO NOT respond to these messages. DO NOT supply any
personal information what so ever to the scammers.
General Scam Indicators – The scams described
above are some of the most common types of Internet
fraud. However, these fraudsters are clever people
who may use many variations of the above scams to
achieve their nefarious ends.
In
general, be wary of unsolicited emails that:
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Promise you money,
jobs or prizes |
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Ask for donations
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Propose lucrative
business deals |
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Ask you to provide
sensitive personal information |
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Ask you to follow a
link to a website and log on to an account.
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By taking the time
to educate yourself about these common types of
scam, and/or by sharing this information with
others, you can make a valuable contribution to
the war against Internet fraud |
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Watch for emails
from scammers who impersonate legitimate
businesses. They will state that they are
updating their systems and need to verify your
account information. Once they receive the
account information from the account holder via
the email response, they will use it to make
unauthorized purchases. |
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Watch for emails
originating from out of the country where any
type of donation is being requested. It is
extremely difficult to verify the legitimacy of
the foreign entity. |
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Be careful when
making on-line purchases. Verify the seller’s
identity and dispute resolution history. |
Sources:
http://www.hoax-slayer.com/common-internet-scams.html
and the Nevada
Consumer Affairs Division
