• Check the spelling or grammar. If a message is poorly written or contains grammatical errors or misspellings, it might have been translated from a foreign language. Often a phisher will change one or two letters to mimic a trusted source.
• Request for personal information. Never give out personal information through email. Refer to the sender’s website if you have questions on the legitimacy of the request.
• Discrepancies between the language of links and the URLs they direct to. Mouse over a link before clicking on it to see where the URL is directing you. The name listed might be different from the actual web address.
• Forms within emails. Phishers try to gather personal information this way.
• A sense of urgency, scare tactics, or highly emotional or charged language. “There’s a problem with your charge card that needs resolving immediately.” “I lost my pocketbook and need you to loan me some money.”
“Phishing” via SMS (text) messaging, called smishing, is gaining strength. Watch many of the same signs plus unusual numbers or references to the last 4 digits of a credit card number. Voice phishing, called vishing, has been around for years. Callers posing as IRS agents is the most common form and has scammed individuals out of millions of dollars. Watch for fear tactics, masked phone numbers, use of personal data that could be gained from social media accounts, or “too good to be true” tactics.
The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center reported that people lost $57 million to phishing schemes in one year.
If you think a scammer has your information, like your Social Security, credit card, or bank account number, go to IdentityTheft.gov. There you will see the specific steps to take based on the information that you lost.
Be vigilant. When in doubt, don’t.
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