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Title: Beware of the newest activity online… Phishing. Author:
Tamara Baruhovich E-mail: marketingplanet1@aol.com Word count:
555 November, 2004. No. I’m not talking here about the outdoor
activity enjoyed by many. And no again; I did not misspell it.
Phishing is the name given to the latest online scam where
millions of unwary Americans are getting their identities
stolen.
This fraudulent activity is considered the fastest growing crime
of modern times. The favorite target groups of phishers seem to
be very young children and senior citizens, as they do not often
ask for credit reports, fill out credit card applications or
solicit loans. This allows the thieves to go undetected for
longer periods of time; but still, be careful. We all are
potential targets.
Remember when throwing away unshredded documents with personal
information in the trash bin was considered a big risk for
identity theft? While this still happens, identity thieves have
become more sophisticated in recent times, and this is how they
do it…
Phishers create bogus e-mails that look as if they came from
large, well-known institutions and banks, such as eBay, Paypal,
Citibank, EarthLink, and Wells Fargo among others. These e-mails
claim that you are due for an account update, or that the
account number, password, social security number or other
confidential information needs to be verified. Then they warn
you, stating that if you do not do it within a certain period of
time, that your account will be closed, terminated, the service
discontinued, or something to that effect.
They even provide you with links to websites that look
legitimate, because they hijack the real logos of these well
known banks, and trusted institutions and companies. And that is
the scary part… these e-mails look 100% legitimate, but they are
not.
In some cases it goes even further… some of these phishers are
installing spyware on your computer to monitor your online
activities. So… should you leave the online world for good? Not
necessarily.
These are a few things you can do to protect yourself from these
scammers:
1. Do not respond to any e-mail that asks for personal
information from you, such as account number, credit card
number, user names, passwords, etc. If you suspect that the
e-mail, indeed, be legitimate, contact your bank or institution
to verify this.
2. When in doubt, visit the Anti-Phishing Working Group for an
update of the latest scams, and tips to avoid becoming a victim.
The website’s URL is www.antiphishing.org
3. Websites like www.Paypal.com, www.citibank.com, and
www.ebay.com, offer security tips and tell you what information
they’d never ask for in an e-mail.
4. Get anti-virus software and keep it up-to-date.
5. If you suspect you have received a fraudulent e-mail, do not
click on any links within it, and forward it to the FTC at
uce@FTC.gov
Finally, if you suspect you’ve been a victim of this fraud, get
a copy of your credit report immediately to check for unusual
activity. If you discover that you’ve been a victim of identity
theft, close your account at once and…
- Call the Credit Bureau. - File a police report. - Call the FTC
ID theft hotline at (877)IDTHEFT. - Alert other financial
institutions where you have accounts.
According to the Anti-Phishing Working Group, phishers send
millions of e-mails a day, getting about 5% response. Even with
this low response, it is estimated that about 150,000 Americans
have fallen prey to these scams since May of 2004. Get informed.
Do not become a victim yourself.
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