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Dealing with Internet Scams
Scams on the internet can come in a variety of ways. The following is information from the FBI regarding email safety to help you avoid being a victim of an internet scam:
- Do not respond to unsolicited (spam) e-mail.
- Do not click on links contained within an unsolicited e-mail.
- Be cautious of e-mail claiming to contain pictures in attached files, as the files may contain viruses. Only open attachments from known senders. Always run a virus scan on attachment before opening.
- Avoid filling out forms contained in e-mail messages that ask for personal information.
- Always compare the link in the e-mail to the web address link you are directed to and determine if they match.
- Log on directly to the official Web site for the business identified in the e-mail, instead of “linking” to it from an unsolicited e-mail. If the e-mail appears to be from your bank, credit card issuer, or other company you deal with frequently, your statements or official correspondence from the business will provide the proper contact information.
- Contact the actual business that supposedly sent the e-mail to verify that the e-mail is genuine.
- If you are requested to act quickly or there is an emergency, it may be a scam. Fraudsters create a sense of urgency to get you to act impulsively.
If you receive a suspicious email, you may delete it, or report it online to the FBI through the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). There is no need to call local police if you simply receive a suspicious email asking for personal information. However, if you have provided money or personal information to a scammer, please contact your local police agency immediately to file a report.
For more information on the wide variety of internet scams, please see: www.lookstoogoodtobetrue.com, the site recommended by the FBI's IC3 to help people recognize internet scams.
Here are a few of the more prevalent scams we have seen on campus.
Phishing for information and Spoofing
You may receive an email that claims to be from a banking institution, an online payment center, or the government that claims that a transaction has failed or that your information needs to be updated. A link will lead you to a web site that looks legitimate. It may ask for your name, date of birth, account numbers, passwords and/or social security numbers.
The Phishing email is designed to fool the recipient into believing that there is something wrong with a legitimate account. There may be spelling errors in the email, or it comes from an institution with which you have no affiliation. Spoofing is a method in which thieves copy the look of a legitimate website and ask for personal information. The website may look unprofessional, or the URL will begin with http:// instead of https:// (the "s" indicates a secure site).
Lottery winner/unclaimed funds
You may have received an email notice that you have won a large sum of cash in a European lottery that you have never played. Or, you receive an email from someone who claims that he or she represents a foreign businessman who cannot move a large sum of funds without your help. Both are designed to get the recipient to wire money to the scammer as payment for taxes on the winnings, or bribery to people who will help get the large amount of money out of the country.
Again, the email recipient may be asked to send account numbers and personal information that can be used to steal money and/or the identity of the email recipient.
Internet auction winner - check's too large
You have sold a small item on an internet auction site. The winner of the auction sends a cashier's check for large amount of money over the agreed-upon price. In your conversations with the winner, he tells you to go ahead and cash the check and wire the extra money back to him. After you cash the check and wire the money to the winner, your bank calls several days later to notify you that the check was fraudulent and that you are responsible for paying back the money.
Should you receive a check like this, please notify the police to make a report prior to cashing the check.