What is a Phishing Scam?
How to avoid being victimized In a phishing (pronounced fishing) scam, an email is drafted to appear to be from a financial institution or other trusted service provider. It is intended to look as close to being “official” as possible, usually incorporating the logo, etc. from the company, and in many cases including some of the same photos found on the companys web site. A phishing email typically explains that due to some type of identity theft attempt, it is important that customers/members now log in (using a link provided) and provide information to confirm their account ownership. It is usually further accompanied by a threat that they may lose access to their account if they do not respond soon. The link, while it may look official and genuine, is anything but. By clicking on the link, the recipient is taken to a phony web site which is also created to look as close to the companys site as possible, with a phony login button. Once an account number and password are entered, they
A phishing scam is an identity theft scam that arrives via email. The email appears to come from a legitimate source such as a trusted business or financial institution, and includes an urgent request for personal information usually invoking some critical need to update an account immediately. Clicking on a link provided in the email leads to an official-looking website. Personal information provided to this site, however, goes directly to the scam artist. Fraud is a growing problem on the internet as people are tricked into providing personal information including credit card numbers, passwords, Mother’s maiden name, bank account numbers, ATM pass codes and social security numbers. Virus protectors and firewalls do not catch most phishing scams because they do not contain suspect code, while spam filters let them pass because they appears to come from legitimate sources. The links included in phishing scams take the unsuspecting person to a fraudulent website designed to mimic the re
Phishing scams are cleverly hidden attempts to get your account information. These emails are sent with legitimate looking header information, company logos and formatting and often claim that there is an urgent need for you to login to your account. Any time you receive one of these emails, please be sure to check the destination URL on the link contained within BEFORE attempting to login or submit any information. These emails are cleverly disguised to appear as though they were sent by a legitimate company, however the links contained within lead the recipient to a false website. These false sites are usually identical (or very similar) to the site the recipient thinks they are traveling to. Once the recipient has logged in, the site owner (scammer/phisher) has their login information and can use it to their advantage. Sometimes the sites will contain fields to be completed, often requesting that the victim update their banking information or other sensitive information.
