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Phishing is the act of trying to
get information under false pretenses. Phishers send an email or pop-up message that claims to be from a business
or organization that you may deal with — for example, an Internet service
provider (ISP), bank, online payment service, or even a government agency.
The message may ask you to “update,” “validate,” or “confirm” your account
information. Some phishing emails threaten a dire consequence if you don’t
respond. The messages direct you to a website that looks just like a
legitimate organization’s site. But it isn’t. It’s a bogus site whose sole
purpose is to trick you into divulging your personal information so the
operators can steal your identity and run up bills or commit crimes in
your name.
WHAT TO DO
If you get an email
or pop-up message that asks for personal or financial information, do not
reply. And don’t click on the link in the message, either. Legitimate
companies don’t ask for this information via email. If you are concerned
about your account, contact the organization mentioned in the email using
a telephone number you know to be genuine, or open a new Internet browser
session and type in the company’s correct Web address yourself. In any
case, don’t cut and paste the link from the message into your Internet
browser — phishers can make links look like they go to one place, but that
actually send you to a different site.
If you do get
tricked into giving up any personal information, immediately go to the
legitimate site and change your password. Forward spam that is
phishing for information to the US government at
spam@uce.gov and to the company, bank,
or organization impersonated in the phishing email. Most organizations
have information on their websites about where to report problems.
Don’t email
personal or financial information. Email is not a secure method of
transmitting personal information. If you initiate a transaction and want
to provide your personal or financial information through an
organization’s website, look for indicators that the site is secure, like
a lock icon on the browser’s status bar or a URL for a website that begins
“https:” (the “s” stands for “secure”). Unfortunately, no indicator is
foolproof; some phishers have forged security icons.
Review credit card and bank account statements as soon as you receive them
to check for unauthorized charges. If your statement is late by more than
a couple of days, call your credit card company or bank to confirm your
billing address and account balances.
PROTECT YOURSELF
Be sure your
anti-virus and anti-spyware software is running properly and is up to
date. Use a firewall. If you need help
with these protections please call us here at Raven Computer Services and
we can help you. Thank you.
Raven Computer
Services
269-668-4040
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