Verne Strickland / USA DOT COM / April 23, 2013
Jude Eden, personal friend and talented conservative activist, helped me deal with the scam which struck just this morning via my Facebook account. She did considerable research to determine what the source was for the bogus initiative. She found the accompanying article posted by the FBI. It seems to match the problem which I experienced although no attachments were included there were no prompts seeking additional information. They failed there. Many thanks to Jude for providing this insight. Makes me feel a little better. Again, thanks to many conservative Internet friends who offered support and encouragement. What a team!
The FBI has recently developed information indicating cyber criminals are attempting to once again send fraudulent e-mails to unsuspecting recipients stating that someone has filed a complaint against them or their company with the Department of Justice or another organization such as the Internal Revenue Service, Social Security Administration, or the Better Business Bureau.
Information obtained during the FBI investigation has
been provided to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). DHS has
taken steps to alert their public and private sector partners with the
release of a Critical Infrastructure Information Notice (CIIN).
The e-mails are intended to appear as legitimate
messages from the above departments, and they address the recipients by
name, and other personal information may be contained within the e-mail.
Consistent with previous efforts, the scam will likely be an effort to
secure Personally Identifiable Information. The nature of these types of
scams is to create a sense of urgency for the recipient to provide a
response through clicking on a hyperlink, opening an attachment, or
initiating a telephone call.
It is believed this e-mail refers to a complaint that is
in the form of an attachment, which actually contains virus software
designed to steal passwords from the recipient. The virus is wrapped in a
screensaver file wherein most anti-virus programs are unable to detect
its malicious intent. Once downloaded, the virus is designed to monitor
username and password logins, and record the activity, as well as other
password-type information, entered on the compromised machine.
“Through FBI investigations we frequently uncover
information about ongoing cyber attacks and scams. We share this
information through our partnership with DHS to alert the public and the
private sector,” noted James E. Finch, Assistant Director of the FBI’s
Cyber Division.
Be wary of any e-mail received from an unknown sender.
Do not open any unsolicited e-mail and do not click on any links
provided. To receive the latest information about cyber scams please go
to the FBI website
and sign up for e-mail alerts by clicking on one of the red envelopes.
If you have received a scam e-mail please notify the IC3 by filing a
complaint at www.ic3.gov. For more information on e-scams, please visit the FBI's New E-Scams and Warnings webpage.
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