Fake e-mails and how to recognize them
Introduction
Scammers go to great lengths to convince unsuspecting people to click links and share personal information. One way is to send fake emails.
Many of these emails may appear to come from a legitimate company, such as an electrical supplier, an online store, or a government agency; however, they all have one thing in common: they are out to get you.
The following list can help you decipher the right from the wrong.
1. Is the e-mail out to scare you?
Scare tactics are commonly used to create a feeling of urgency in the reader.
Common scenarios include “problems” with accounts that will be shut down in a specified number of days. Scams that inform you that you will lose all your information, or that your information has already been compromised. E-mails that let you know that items have been purchased that you don’t recognize. False claims of invoices that need immediate payment or an invoice for services that you don’t recognize.
These e-mails usually have a link in the body of the e-mail, and you are advised to click on the link to solve the presented issue. These links should not be used to access your account details.
Always go to the website of your provider directly. When in doubt pick up the phone and call your provider. One way to check if the email could be fake is to open the “Show detail” tab so you can see where this e-mail originates from.
Often the sender will have a lot of garbled letters in the email address. An official looking e-mail from a government organization will have the sender’s address from a Gmail account. These kinds of emails should be reported as spam and deleted without opening any attachments or links.
2. Is the e-mail rewarding you?
Did you get an e-mail claiming you won an amount of money? Did you by chance inherit funds from an overseas family member? Is a major shipping company trying to reach you to deliver a package?
Don’t get too excited as you could, in this enthusiastic state, click on a link that could scam you out of money. Never follow up by responding to these kinds of e-mails. Think long and hard about whether you have family in Borneo, or if you entered in a competition to win a cruise to Australia.
This kind of e-mail should be treated in the same way as the e-mails that employ scare tactics. Make a note of the name of the company in the email and do some searching on the Internet. Many times, you will find other people being scammed in this way.
3. Does the e-mail have an attachment?
One of your contacts, that you have not heard from in a while, sends you an e-mail with an attachment. Unsuspectingly you open the attachment. Without realizing it, you end up with malware infecting your computer, monitoring everything you do and stealing your passwords. That contact could have had malware on their computer, and it is now stealing your credentials. You never suspected that it is fake as it came from a legitimate source.
Even if a person is on your contact list, always check with them first before opening any attachments. The best course of action is to not to reply to that mail with the attachment you received, but to write a new e-mail from scratch. You could also send them a text message asking to confirm that they did indeed send the mail in question.
Even though this sounds like a lot of work, it is better to be safe, than having to clean your computer from malware. You don’t want to explain to your friends, co-workers and possibly even your boss how it happened that you sent them malware in an attachment because your account was compromised. That is never a good conversation to have.
4. Emails from family members
You have to be careful, even when the email seems to originate from a family member. Without their knowledge they could have been hacked, and their email is being used to scam you.
You might get an e-mail explaining that a family member was in a horrific accident, complete with a photo of a mangled car. The email could ask for funds for hospital debt, or something to that effect and can possibly include bank details or a link where you can deposit money.
Some other examples include an e-mail from a close friend that is stranded, and you need to send them a gift card ASAP.
Your best course of action is to never trust anything like this. Always speak to this person directly to get the correct information.
5. Using security software
Email spam filters and security software can protect you against fake e-mails. Additionally, it can also help protect against malware installations and virus downloads.
This type of software is not the be-all and end-all of fake e-mails. Bad actors constantly try to outwit these software solutions, so you should still be vigilant when you receive an email.
In Gmail and Outlook, you can activate Email Protection. This free service labels your e-mails so that you are able to identify possible unsafe emails.
Scamio by Bitdefender is a free chatbot that you can use to help you check if your email, link, QR code, text or social media post is legitimate.
6. Reporting a Scam Email
Most e-mail providers give you the ability to report scam email directly from your inbox. Some larger companies have dedicated teams that work at solving scams. You can reach out to them and find out if they want more information.
You could also report it to the Federal Trade Commission, and lastly please let your family or friends know if a spammed email originated from them or you That way all parties can change their passwords and run anti-virus/anti malware software on their computer.
What if I opened a scam e-mail?
If you only opened an e-mail and did not leave any personal details, you should run a full system scan, using your computer’s anti malware program or you could buy software for this purpose. Just don’t buy it directly from your possibly infected computer.
It is always a good idea to change your password after you, without thinking, accessed a link in an e-mail. Change the password of the account you accessed to a new strong password and to be extra safe you should enable Multi Factor Authentication.
Keep a good eye on your financial institutions for the next couple of weeks so you can pick up on unusual activities. Immediately revoke your payment cards if you see anything suspicious.
Be aware of telephone scams or people that call you from unknown numbers as they could be using your stolen information to phone you with another scam.
Your family, friends or contacts in your e-mail lists may notice spam e-mails that originate from your e-mail address. Warning all your contacts not to respond to any of your e-mails without checking with you first is a good idea.
Always report scams to help other people not fall victim to the same scam. If you have lost money, you should file a police report and visit your bank to report this. There might be a possibility that your money could be refunded, however this could take some time. Remember this is your money and no matter how good-hearted you feel you should be, please be careful and protect what is yours, there are many bad actors without a conscience that have no problem taking your money.
Conclusion
Education is the key to avoid scam email attempts. Everyone should cultivate a habit of questioning whether emails received are legitimate. Understanding the methods used by scammers can keep your communications and inbox safe. Bad actors are always coming up with better scams, so always be vigilant and keep on reporting those scams.
