FBI warns of new banking scam

Be warned!  An article from BankRate.com:

 

Some crafty criminals are aiming to steal one of the most valuable pieces of your personal property: your banking information.

In a new warning, the Federal Bureau of Investigation warns account holders of a new spam email scheme that involves a type of malware called “Gameover.” The scheme involves fake emails from the National Automated Clearing House Association, the Federal Reserve or the FDIC. These messages attempt to trick recipients into clicking on a link to resolve some type of issue with their accounts or a recent ACH transaction. Once you click on the link, Gameover takes over your computer, and thieves can steal usernames, passwords and your money.

The FBI also warns the thieves’ hacking capabilities can navigate around common user authentication methods banks use to verify your identity, which is certainly a cause for concern. Those additional authentication steps — often personal questions, birth dates or other pieces of private information – are meant to provide some extra security padding.

While phishing scams are nothing new to the world of online banking, this type of warning serves as a reminder of just how susceptible account holders can be to malicious attacks. As more account holders begin to jump on the mobile banking bandwagon, it’s important to remember that a smartphone essentially acts as another computer. While this additional connection to the Internet is convenient, it also serves as another outlet where your information can be compromised.

Here are a few crucial steps to take to avoid falling victim to this type of Internet crime.

• Keep      your computer and mobile device updated with the newest versions of      anti-virus software.
• If you      have any doubts about an email sender’s authenticity, do not click on any      embedded links.
• Remember,      banks never request any personal information via email.
• Be      vigilant about checking your account balances. The sooner you notice and      report any type of fraudulent activity, the more likely you’ll be able to      be reimbursed for any missing funds.

Can you tell a real Facebook e-mail from a phishing attempt?

Great article from ZDNet:

 

E-mail notifications are an important part of social networking services like Facebook. If you have to continually visit the site to see what’s new, you lose much of the excitement that comes with comments on your photos or other shared items. If you forget to check for a day or two, you might miss an invitation to an event or an opportunity to connect with a long-lost friend who’s in town for a day or two.

But e-mail notifications are also a security risk. If an attacker can create a realistic-looking imitation of a Facebook notification, you might find yourself clicking on a link that can lead to malware or attempt to steal your login credentials.

Unfortunately, phishers are getting better at what they do, and spotting a fake isn’t as easy as you might think. I’ve assembled four Facebook notifications that arrived in my e-mail inbox recently. Can you tell which are real and which are fake? (Click any image to see it at full size, or visit the accompanying gallery to flip through all four screens at full size.)

Here’s one that arrived last week. As with all the images, I’ve blurred personal information but otherwise these messages are shown in full, as they appear in Microsoft Outlook’s preview pane.

If you guessed that one was a fake, congratulations. It led to a website that was flagged as dangerous by Microsoft’s SmartScreen Filter, by Google’s Safe Browsing feature, and by Safari. If you were using an outdated browser such as Internet Explorer 6 or 7, you would have seen an attempt to install a fake Flash update that was actually a password-stealing Trojan.

OK, let’s try another. Real or fake?

Do you think that odd e-mail address indicates a fake? Confusingly, Facebook notifications come from the facebookmail.com domain and include a suspicious-looking sender’s name. The long, complicated URL might also look suspicious, but this notification is a legit one from Facebook.

OK, here’s a third test. Real or fake?

Hmmm. The previous, real notification included a long complicated URL. This one has a pair of buttons that you’re supposed to click to see the comments a friend supposedly added to your shared link. That’s a favorite trick that phishers and spammers use to disguise misleading links. Surprisingly, this one is legit.

OK, last one. Real or fake?

This is a particularly convincing fake. The graphics, fonts, button design, and links are all indistinguishable from a real Facebook notification. This particular phishing attempt led to a fake online pharmacy, but it could just as easily have led to a malware installer.

One of these fakes was good enough to slip past my spam filters. In that case, the only way to determine that it wasn’t legit was to allow the mouse pointer to hover over a link or button to see what its true destination was. Here’s what it looked like:

That’s certainly not a legitimate link. Here, by contrast, is what a link from a real Facebook notification looks like:

It’s a challenge to get nontechnical users in the habit of checking links before they click, but the results are well worth it.

The Top 10 Culprits Causing Malware Infections

I think it is safe to assume that the places you visit on the Internet will determine which programs are installed on your PC. Let me put it this way, the software installed on your computer will have some relevance to the sites you often visit. Lets take a few examples, when you are using Gmail, chances are good that you will have Gmail Notifier or GoogleTalk installed on your PC. When you often visit Yahoo.com or take part in their social networks, chances are good that you will have Yahoo! Toolbar or Yahoo! Messenger installed on your PC. Lets take a more practical example, users visiting Microsoft.com most probably have packages like Microsoft Office and Microsoft Windows XP installed on their computers. It is likely for supporters of the Open Source Initiative to hang out on sites like OpenSource.org, OpenOffice.com, Linux.org or SpreadFirefox.com. So your software preferences play a huge role in the type of web sites you visit and vice versa.

But what has this to do with malware infections? To be honest, everything! Let me show you what the top culprits of malware infections are and it will soon be clear to you what the connection is between the web sites you visit and the malware found on your PC.

Top culprit number 1: Pornographic web sites

Download Spyware Blaster by JavaCool Software and have a look at all the porn related web sites blocked by this program. It is also remarkable to see how many computers with traces of pornographic web sites in their browser history, are often infected with spyware and trojan horses. Unfortunately you will have innocent victims of malware infections, also with traces of pornographic web sites in their browser history, but only because the malware redirected them to these sites. However, people with pornographic material on their computers are not that innocent in this case, pornography does not go out looking for people, people go out looking for pornography.

Top culprit number 2: Illegal music (MP3) and movie downloading sites

These sites normally force you to install special downloading software on your computer so that you can download files from them. These download managers are often bundled with spyware and are trojan horses themselves, downloading tons of other spyware programs while you cheerfully download your illegal MP3′s. They sometimes place tracking cookies on your PC to monitor your browsing habits and hijack your browser to make sure you return to their site or a site of a partner.

Top culprit number 3: Software Piracy web sites

If you love using illegal software, cracks, serial numbers or license key generators (keygens) then you most probably had to remove some malware infections in the past after visiting one of these sites. Most of the people using these cracks are normally technical wizards and know how to disinfect their computers. Many of these sites do not only contain harmful scripts but also fake cracks and key generators, which are nothing else but malware. Some crack developers create a working crack but distribute it with spyware or a trojan horse to make your PC their slave.

Top culprit number 4: Peer-to-peer file sharing programs and networks

The file sharing community is loaded with pornography, pirated software, music and movies. Is it not amazing that everywhere these guys make their appearance you also find spyware, viruses, trojan horses and all kinds of malware? The client software is also often bundled with spyware (or adware as they call it).

The culprits discussed so far are those connected with illegal and indecent activities. People visiting these sites and using these services deserve getting infected with malware. These culprits are also some of the biggest sources of malware epidemics. What flows from the mouth, comes from within the heart. The same rule applies to your computer, those nasty little programs crawling inside your computer is, in the case of culprits 1 to 4, the direct result of your own sinful actions and activities.

The next couple of culprits are caused by negligence and a lack of knowledge about how malware are distributed.

Top culprit number 5: Pop-up and pop-under advertisements

Another culprit that wants to caught you off guard. A pop-up window may appear out of the blue or a concealed pop-under window my load in the background without you even knowing it. These windows can start downloading malicious programs and install them on your computer. They can appear on any web site, not just illegal and other bad web sites. You can prevent these windows from opening by using a secure browser like Firefox with a built-in pop-up blocker.

Top culprit number 6: Fake anti-virus and anti-spyware tools

You visit a legitimate looking web site and suddenly a banner appears telling you that your computer is infected with spyware. You can scan your computer with all the anti-spyware software in the world, over and over again until you are blue in the face, but that banner will keep telling you that your computer is infected with spyware. This is because it is a plain image banner. The site never does a scan of your computer, it is a fixed message that will display on any computer, no matter how clean it is. Simply put, it is a blatant lie! They want you to believe that your computer is infected and that only their software can remove this spyware. If you download and install their software you will only find that it is spyware itself. You may end up infecting a completely clean system with a dirty program, trying to remove the so-called spyware.

A system scan is not a three second process, it takes time, so no scanner can tell you instantaneously that your system is infected with spyware. I do not believe in online scanners, rather use software with a good reputation, a local scan is much more faster. Most online scanners are no online scanners at all, you actually download the whole scanning engine and end up doing a local scan anyway. A real scanner will tell you the name of the malware and its location on your hard drive, if it does not give you this information, then it is fake. Even if it gives you this information, it still does not mean that the software is legitimate. Do not trust everything you see online and stick to well known anti-malware brands.

Top culprit number 7: Free games, screen savers, media players, etc.

No, not every free program comes bundled with spyware, but spyware (once again the developers prefer to call it adware, but it is still the same thing) is often the price you have to pay for the free software. It is normally a ploy to monitor your use of the program, to send the creators statistical data or to collect data about your online behaviour in order to send you targeted ads. If you try to remove the spyware you normally render the main application useless. Read the EULA (End User Licence Agreement) very carefully before installing the application. But everyone knows that nobody reads those tedious, long licence agreements, so use EULAlyzer by JavaCool Software to check for specific keywords and phrases that might reveal any spyware programs being installed or privacy breaching practices that may occur if you install the free software.

Top culprit number 8: Malicious web pages with harmful scripts

But you already mentioned this one in culprits 1 to 3. No, culprits 1 to 3 often have harmless web sites and it is the content you download from the sites that is harmful. But you also get web pages containing malicious scripts, totally innocent looking web sites, like a site donating money for cancer. You go to their homepage and suddenly a script virus strikes your computer. This is what an anti-virus shield was made for, that unexpected attack. Firefox is also designed to prevent harmful scripts and browser hijackers from accessing the system and taking advantage of flaws and weak spots in your operating system.

Top culprit number 9: E-mail

Virus worms spread themselves by forwarding a copy of the virus to all the contacts in your address book. Those contacts that are unaware of these worms will most likely open the e-mail and the file attached to it. But when you open a strange infected e-mail from an unknown sender, then you are guilty of double negligence. For the virus to be activated you need to open the e-mail and in most cases you need to deliberately open the file attachment too. By using a little common sense you will know that strange e-mails from unknown senders are dangerous, especially when they have executable attachments with file names ending with the “exe”, “com”, “bat” or “scr” extensions. Even dangerous e-mails from known, trustworthy contacts can easily be identified if the contents of the e-mail seems strange and out of character. By being careful and responsible when opening your e-mails, you will not only prevent your own computer from getting infected, but you will also prevent the worm from spreading any further.

Top culprit number 10: You the Internet user

What? Me? How on earth can I be a culprit? Well, you are an accomplice in the spread of malware if you do not have an active and updated anti-virus package installed on your computer, if you do not scan your computer for viruses and spyware on a regular basis, if you do not use shields like the TeaTimer tool from SpyBot (which is free by the way), the Ad-Watch shield of Ad-Aware or the resident shield of AVG Anti-spyware (all of which you have to pay for, unfortunately), if you spend your time browsing pornographic and illegal web sites and take part in the sharing of pirated software and copyrighted material (culprits 1 to 4), if you fail to be responsible with the software you install on your PC and the e-mails you open (culprits 6, 7 and 9) and if you refuse to use a secure web browser (like Firefox) built to prevent malware infections (culprits 5 and 8). Yes, I will go so far to say, that if you stay away from culprits 1 to 7 and 9, you probably won’t need any virus and spyware protection at all. Culprit 8 is the only reason why you should have anti-virus and anti-spyware protection, for those unexpected attacks, over which you have no control.

Culprits 1 to 8 are the main sources of malware. Infections caused by them led to the creation of culprits 9 and 10, which distribute the malware even further. Do not turn your computer into a malware paradise or a malware distribution centre. Take responsibility, protect your computer against these threats and prevent the spread of malware.

Eight threats your anti-virus won’t stop

This article is from Sophos, a security company:

http://www.sophos.com/security/topic/why-endpoint-security.html

High-profile incidents that make big news might seem out of the ordinary. Yet businesses of every size face similar risks in the everyday acts of using digital technology and the internet for legitimate purposes. This paper outlines eight common threats that traditional anti-virus alone won’t stop, and explains how to protect your organization using endpoint security.

The zero-day threat

Zero-day threats can exploit zero-day vulnerabilities, or previously unknown security deficiencies, that software vendors have not yet patched.

How to protect yourself: Add defenses on top of signature-based anti-virus protection.

Working outside the firewall

Not so long ago, most employees used their computers at the office. Back then, a network or gateway firewall would have been enough to protect your servers and PCs. Now people often work outside the perimeter of the organization’s network—any time they connect their laptops to the internet from airports, hotels, cafés and home.

How to protect yourself: Add location-aware client firewall software on laptops and other endpoint PCs.

The unpatched PC

One small unpatched vulnerability in an application, browser or operating system can lead to huge problems.

How to protect yourself: Patching is the first line of defense. Also use network access control, or NAC, to make sure any computer you allow on your network has all current patches and anti-virus updates in place.

The uncontrolled application

Allowing unmanaged applications access to the web brings unacceptable risk or performance issues.

How to protect yourself: Application control lets you block users from installing non-essential applications so you have fewer applications to manage and secure.

Web insecurity

Criminals abuse the web as their single biggest distribution point for malware.

How to protect yourself: Use combination of URL (reputation) filtering and scanning web pages for malware.

The lost laptop

It’s not difficult to replace a laptop, but recovering the exposed information can be.

How to protect yourself: Develop and implement a data encryption policy.

The misdirected email

One simple slip of the fingertip—and your document goes to the wrong email address. This could expose personal identifiable information.

How to protect yourself: Use data loss prevention software to scan for sensitive content.

The infected USB device

Every time users plug a USB device into a company computer, they bypass other layers of defense such as gateway firewall protection. That makes devices with USB ports an easy means of attack.

How to protect yourself: Use device control to specify which USB devices users are permitted to plug into laptops and PCs.

Top ten up and coming technologies of 2011

Another interesting article from Larry Dignan on TechRepublic:

1: Cloud computing

This group of technologies has been on the top 10 lists for a few years. Now everything as a service will alter business models and IT procurement. Gartner analyst David Cearley said what has changed is that there are multiple services. Companies will probably need cloud computing brokers. Things to watch:

• Where does the public cloud fit? IT is generally scared of the public cloud, but select workloads are fine.
• Beware cloud washing. IT execs are comfortable with the vendors cloud washing but may not get real capability.
• Limit access to specific clouds based on community and groups. That approach would minimize security risks. Gartner has exclusive clouds and community clouds as services to watch.
• Private clouds are custom and packaged.

My impression: A safe pick for sure, but the cloud is getting more granular as it matures. Think cloud washing magnified.

2: Mobile apps and media tablets

Tablets and touch aren’t new. Claunch said that the selection of applications changes the game for businesses. “Apple has leveraged the ecosystem of the iPhone,” Claunch said. “And Apple has created consistency.” In addition, Apple’s iPad is the poster child for how consumerization is affecting corporate IT. Things to think about for enterprise IT:

• Enterprise apps will need to be designed for the tablet.
• Delivering these apps gets complicated due to the selection of platforms.
• Context-aware computing can connect to customers better.
• Marketing will drive a lot of projects to utilize tablets, but these devices can be used for inspections, surveys, image capture, documentation, and training.

Cearley added, “The PC era is over. Think of mobile design points.”

My impression: It’s stunning how many iPads are in this crowd of 7,000-plus IT execs and managers. Another thread: Almost all of these IT execs are carrying PCs not Macs. Typically, CIOs and the like are the last to get on board an early adoption curve for a new device. There’s a frenzy over tablets.

3: Next-gen analytics

Companies need to develop “operational analytics” to make predictions and use data mashups. “There’s value in very current information. We are now shifting our focus to start doing simulations and modeling to predict the future,” Claunch said. These simulations would ultimately be run on smartphones and other devices. Algorithms will really matter to companies to support the right type of prediction.

Gartner didn’t advocate doing a lot of analytics investment yet, but be ready to invest.

My impression: Analytics is largely untapped ground for many companies. Claunch’s key point: “This is just being enabled now.” Another key item: A show of hands revealed that the entire room had business intelligence software. A show of hands also indicated that no one thought those applications were delivering real value.

4: Social analytics

This concept revolves around taking social networking data and incorporating it into enterprise analysis. Sentiment, context, and influence are key areas for companies. “We’re starting to see the tipping point,” Cearley said. “It’s moving from bleeding edge to mainstream activity.” For now, look at communities you have to support and analyze an entry.

My impression: CIOs should be watching this stuff, but given the crowd response to business intelligence, I’m not seeing much progress on the analytics-social intersection.

5: Social communication and collaboration

Social collaboration is “inevitable,” Cearley said. “Over the next few years, it will be impossible to ignore this,” he added. By now, companies should have policies, high value social uses identified, and have experiments to link social with CRM systems. Meanwhile, unified communications will merge with social. Expertise location will probably be the best use case.

My impression: Gartner makes a good point, but I’d be willing to bet that enterprises are way behind the curve on social communication and what it means for collaboration and productivity.

6: Video

Corporate use of video is going mainstream. Low-cost video recorders are everywhere. Companies will need video content management systems and better design skills, and they’ll need to address privacy issues and policy concerns. Will all conference rooms be recorded by default? E-learning, merchandising, marketing, webinars, and telepresence will all be key video uses. The tipping point will come in 2011 to 2013. In addition, video will be needed to reach younger employees.

My impression: Video has hit mainstream, but networks haven’t. Will Vlogs really be the best use of employee time? One other key point: How will business intelligence systems digest video content?

7: Context-aware computing

The idea here is that social analytics and computing leads to knowledge about preferences. User interfaces would change based on context. Today, it’s all reactive. By 2011 to 2013, there will be more proactive alerts. By 2014 to 2018, you’ll have context integrated with enterprise systems. Ultimately, there will be a context platform. Portals, mashups, mobile, and social will combine. Vendors will offer “user experience platforms.”

My impression: I have a hard time seeing strapped enterprises going all contextual. Look for business units such as marketing to launch these projects to drive sales. Companies will need to deliver context-aware services to businesses. Can’t wait for all of those user experience platform pitches.

8: Ubiquitous computing

This topic has been discussed in previous years on Gartner’s lists. In a nutshell, computers melt into objects. There will be machine-to-machine connections, portable personalities, and connectivity changes across multiple devices. There will be thousands of computers for each person on the planet, and you’ll have multiple devices.

My impression: Ubiquitous computing is more a guiding principle for projects than something you think about in terms of budget. The timeline here is decades. What’s also notable: Everyone has punted on getting one device to consolidate them all. We’re doomed to carry a bunch of devices.

9: Storage class memory

When Flash meets RAM, there are differences in speed and costs. Persistent storage will also alter management. Claunch said that storage class memory goes beyond solid state drives. This new class of storage will lead to software where operating systems determine where data goes. Storage class memory will become more important over the next two to three years.

My impression: It’s a bit experimental, but storage class memory will ride shotgun with analytics. Companies will have to define what data goes into fast memory.

10: Fabric based infrastructure and computers

Every vendor will talk fabric computing, so get ready for fabric-washing. The overall idea here is that you’ll have infrastructure that manages resources in an integrated fashion. Cisco UCS and HP Matrix are examples. New ways of building servers will mean you buy pools of processors and memory instead of physically swapping boxes.

My impression: Forming your own flexible servers sounds appealing. The fabric thing sounds way futuristic for now, but the seeds are being planted

What? Your computer is slow? Why?

Why is my computer running so slowly? When I bought it, it was so fast…but now I can barely get my internet up. Does this sound familiar? Computers sure can help us simplify our lives but when they stop working the way they used to, it can be frustrating. So what are the reasons a computer slows down?

 

Here are my top 5 reasons that I see on a daily basis:

 

• 1-Clicking yes on everything – Downloading tool bars – Just because it comes to you for free and promises to help you, doesn’t mean it actually does. Many times I see internet explorer bogged down with a yahoo toolbar, a Google toolbar, and other toolbars that take away resources from the browser. These small programs start up when you start up your internet and take away space and time. They promise you help with searching and finding things quickly, but when you have too many, it has the opposite effect. Also, when cruising on the internet…don’t click on everything that they give you. Yes, it’s free but how many computer clean up tools does a person need. Not only do they conflict with one another, they generally install malware (bad things that get into your system – spyware, adware, viruses, Trojans) that hurt your computer. Just remember…nothing is really for free…you are paying for it in one way or another
• 2- Boy, is this desk a mess - Not Cleaning up your files - Computers are like file cabinets. Eventually you can fill one up, have it overflow and you can’t find anything. Computers gather data that starts off making your life organized. What happens when you start stuffing it full of information? You need to clean your computer just like you would have to clean your file cabinet. All computers have clean up tools already installed in them. We just need to use them. Cookies, temporary files and set up files collect on your hard drive and over time clutter up and are hard to sift through. One should clean up (disk clean up and defragment) at least once a month. This keeps your computer running smoothly and with little issues.
• 3-I wanna play…pick me… Too many things running in background…start up – When you computer starts up, there are many programs that start up with it. The only programs that should run when your computer starts up are your anti-virus program, and any drivers (hardware) that need to make your computer run. That is really all you need. Sometimes I get computers that have multiple programs running such as limewire, quicken, Microsoft office, adobe, etc…and they take so much time to open. Only open programs that you need to use and then when you close them, you’re done. Why have these programs take away from your computer performance. So when download or installing, make sure you do not check the open at start up option.
• 4 –I don’t feel so well- Viruses or operating system issues – Installing freeware, downloading music and clicking on unfamiliar emails can leave your system open for vulnerabilities. Malware can come in many ways and can infect your system and certainly slow it down. You should get a highly rated anti-virus program and make sure it is updated daily. I recommend scanning your system once a week to make sure nothing comes in and if something does, hopefully, it will scan out. Remember no anti-virus can give you 100% protection, but the better ones help out tremendously. Remember what I said about freeware…you get what you pay for, so buy yourself a good one. Malware can start slowly…and eventually take over a system and render it useless. Also, it can cause operating system issues by making necessary files not work. It can corrupt your registry (where your system files, settings and options) and take over your system slowly. You may notice small issues but sooner than later, your computer will start to lock up, freeze and not boot.
• Ouch something is broken! – Hardware issues – RAM can be an issue if your computer is older than 3 years old. Programs are being made daily that need more speed and more space. Adding RAM can help these older computers. RAM helps with the speed on your computer. It helps the processor and hard drive work together. Also, If your hard drive is smaller and you are storing a lot of pictures and music, you may want to consider a large external hard drive to store your information on. Freeing up space on your hard drive makes cleaning up and defragmenting your computer easier. Sometimes these parts just start to go bad, and replacing makes a world of difference.

 

Follow these guidelines for basic care and maintenance. This will keep your computer running smoothly for years to come.

 

-Tara Belzer owns Friendly Computers in Charlotte NC. She has her own blog on www.tarabelzerfriendlycomputers and talks about computer issues in an open forum. She enjoys to help people understand computers and make them feel more comfortable with them. Visit Tara’s site at www.friendlycomputers.com/charlotte .

New Funny Hoaxes and Legends and Truths!

WARNING- This is true

BBB Alert: Phishing Scams Pose as Fed Ex and UPS to Con Consumers

 

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - December 4, 2008 - With only three weeks left to get holiday cards and gifts sent to loved ones, phishing scams are posing as holiday shipping and mailing services to scam consumers. The Better Business Bureau is warning consumers to be on the lookout for two new phishing scams this holiday season. Hackers and scammers are pretending to be customer service personnel from some of the biggest names in business – including FedEx and UPS.  Hackers are impersonating well-known companies in order to gain access to computer drives to steal your personal information including Social Security, bank or credit card numbers.  

 

“While most of the country is preparing to celebrate the holidays, cyber criminals are spreading computer viruses and stealing identities,” said Tom Bartholomy, president and CEO of The Better Business Bureau of Southern Piedmont. “Hackers using e-mail phishing messages are posing as trusted businesses to take advantage of the seasonal increase in online shopping and shipping of merchandise all across the country.” 

 

The BBB has the following advice:

 

Shipping scams – Hackers send phishing e-mails from “shipping companies” claiming that there is a problem with delivery of merchandise. Commonly, the e-mail will include a hyperlink for recipients to click on that will take them to another Web site that might install malware or solicit personal information. A message currently making the rounds has a subject line that looks like, “Subject: Tracking Number 13040065504.” The body of the message claims that a package could not be delivered and advises the recipient, “to print the copy of the invoice that is in the added file.” The attachment is actually a virus that will infect the computer.

 

BBB Advice: Instead of clicking on the link in the e-mail, go directly to the shipper’s Web site or contact the company via telephone to confirm whether there is a shipping problem with your package. Do not open attachments to unsolicited e-mails.

 

E-card scams – E-cards are a popular and inexpensive way to deliver season’s greetings to loved ones. With legitimate e-cards, the recipient receives an e-mail with a hyperlink that will take the user to the e-card which is housed on a Web site. Unfortunately, by design, e-cards are an easy way for hackers to disguise phishing e-mails and direct you to their Web sites which will install viruses and malware on your computer.  You should  be careful about clicking on a link in an e-card as the hackers will often use logos from recognized brands and companies in order to appear legitimate.

 

BBB advice: Phishing e-mails posing as e-cards can be difficult to spot. Spelling and grammatical mistakes should be a red flag. Also, do not follow the link in an e-card if you do not recognize the name of the sender. Consumers who receive suspicious e-mails should report them to the Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.

 

For more information, please visit www.bbb.org or call the BBB (toll-free in NC and SC) at 1-877-317-7236.         

• and here is an example of this:

                           This is a HOAX:OK>….. here are some links from Snopes.com that will be real viruses:

http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/obamavideo.asp

http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/cnnalert.asp

http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/obamaspeech.asp

And these are real HOAXES:

http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/mobile.asp

http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/gotyou.asp

http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/jdbgmgr.asp

Friendly Computers hopes you enjoyed this!

Contact Fedex Delivery Man Mr.Daniel j Cole for your package of $800.000.00 United States Dollars, with your valid home address and phone number, find his contact below .Contact Person: Mr.Daniel j Cole Email fedexdispatchunit2008@live.com Telephone 0044-704-571-8669 0044-700-593-8850

0044-704-572-3886

Regard,

Mr.Wellingston Ferguson.

 

 

Dear Capital One Customer,

This is your official notification from Capital One. Your online account has expired. If you want
to continue using our service you have to renew your online account. If not, your online account
will be deactivated and deleted.

To continue click here, complete the renew form with your current
information.

Many Thanks and Kind Regards – Capital One Bank – Update Department

• Look at hyperlinks and pay attention to web addresses!
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Country:…………………..

So your mailings are much needed,

Yours faithfully,

Mr: Ali Yusuf.

Services Manager,

Payment and Release order Department,

CHEVRON LOTTERY PROCESSING AGENT.

Federal Capital City,

Abuja.Nigeria

Email:mr_ali_yusuf660@yahoo.com.hk

Call Me @:+23480-7206-1247

Mr.Deji Suleman

Chevron Oil Petroluem Bonanza/Lottery

Coordinator,

Winning Department,

Email Hoaxes….some examples

Here are some examples of email hoaxes…Can you tell me why these are hoaxes?

Example #1:

Your Bank Draft
Greetings: !

I have been waiting for you since to contact me for your Confirmable Bank Draft of $900.000.00 United States Dollars, but I did not hear from  you since that time. Then I went and deposited the Draft with FEDEX COURIER SERVICE,West Africa, I traveled out of the country for a 3 Months  Course and I will not come back till end of November.

What you have to do now is to contact the FEDEX COURIER SERVICE as soon as possible to know when they will deliver your package to you because  of the expiring date. For your information, I have paid for the delivering Charge,Insurance premium and Clearance Certificate Fee of the Cheque showing that it is not a Drug Money or meant to sponsor Terrorist attack in your Country.

The only money you will send to the FEDEX COURIER SERVICE to deliver your Draft direct to your postal Address in your country is ($245.00 US)Dollars only being Security Keeping Fee of the Courier Company so far. Again,don’t be deceived by anybody to pay any other money except $245.00
USD.

I would have paid that but they said no because they don’t know when  you will contact them and in case of demurrage. You have to contact the FEDEX COURIER SERVICE now for the delivery of your Draft with this information below;

Contact Person: Mr.James Graham
Email Address: fedex_claims_dept@live.com
Telephone: +234-805-092-8096

Finally, make sure that you reconfirm your Postal address( ) and Direct telephone number to them again to avoid any mistake on the Delivery and ask them to give you the tracking number to enable you track your package over there and know when it will get to your address.

Let me repeat again, try to contact them as soon as you receive this mail to avoid any further delay and remember to pay them their Security Keeping fee of $245.00 US Dollars for their immediate action. You should also let me know through email as soon as you receive your Draft.

Yours Faithfully,

Mr. Amaranth.Wilson

Example #2:

Thank you for your interest in the Mystery Shopper position.

Our company conducts surveys and evaluates other companies in order to help them achieve their performance goals.

We offer an integrated suite of business solutions that enables corporations to achieve tangible results in the marketplace.

We get hired by other companies and act like customers to find out how they are handling their services in relation to their customers.

Mystery Shopping is the most accurate and reliable tool a business can use to gather information regarding their actual customer service performance at the moment of truth. This moment of truth is not when the staff is on their best behavior because the boss is around – it is when they interact with customers during their normal daily routines.

This is where you, the Mystery Shopper, come in. You pose as an ordinary customer and provide feedback of both factual observations (ex…the floor was free of debris) and your own opinions (ex…I felt that the temperature in the establishment was too cold).

Mystery Shoppers must remain anonymous. You must act as a regular customer and be careful not to do anything that would reveal you as a shopper. An inexperienced shopper could tip off the staff to his/her identity by asking for the manager’s name for no clear or appropriate reason. If you are going to be bringing someone with you on the shop, make sure you educate them about the process as well. Beware that even whispers can be overheard by employees. If anyone notices you are a shopper, you can bet that word will quickly spread around the establishment and you will get some of the best customer service in town.

No company can afford to have a gap between the promise of quality and its actual delivery, that’s why leading corporations look to us, the nation’s premiere mystery shopping and customer experience measurement company.

In order for a business to effectively compete in today’s economy, they must be prepared to meet the challenge of increasing sales by:

* Retaining existing customers

* Acquiring new customers

* Creating word-of-mouth advocacy

* Improving customer loyalty

Once we have a contract to do so, you would be directed to the company or outlet, and you would be given the funds you need to do the job(either purchase merchandise or require services), after which you would write a detailed report of your experience.

Examples of details you would forward to us are:

1) How long does it take to get served.

2) Politeness of the attendant.

3) Customer service professionalism.

4) Sometimes you might be required to upset the attendant, to see how they deal with difficult clients.

Then we turn the information over to the company executives and they will carry out their own duties in improving their services.

Most companies employ our assistance when people complain about their services, or when they feel there is a need for them to improve upon their customer service.

Our company partners with you to implement proven mystery shop auditing and surveying strategies that provide critical information about customer experiences.

You will be paid a commission of $100 for every duty you carry out, and bonus on your transportation allowance.

Your task will be to evaluate and comment on customer service in a wide variety of restaurants, retail stores, casinos, shopping malls, banks and hotels in your area.

Qualities of a good Mystery Shopper:

* Is 21 years of age or older

* Loves to go shopping

* Is fair and objective

* Is ON TIME

* Is very observant and able to focus on details

* Is fairly intelligent

* Has patience

* Is detail oriented

* Is practical

* Types well

* Is trustworthy

* Explains well in writing

* Is discreet

* Loves to learn

* Handles deadlines

* Has full internet access (at home or at work) Mystery Shopping is fun and exciting but also must be approached very seriously and is definitely not for everyone.

If you are interested in applying for consideration as a Mystery Shopper do send in your information: michael.peterson164@gmail.com Full Name:

Address:

City:

State:

Zip Code:

Phone Number:

Age:

Occupation:

As soon as we receive your information we will add you to our database and we will look for locations in your area that needs to be evaluated.

Thank you,

Michael Neilsen

Quality Survey Solutions Inc.

6305 Green Circle Drive

Minnetonka, MN 55341

 

Example #3:

 

Antivirus 2009 for Windows
Protect your PC from Viruses

Download Antivirus 2009

Protect your computer from virus attacks, Trojans, and other forms of Malware.
Included: Registry Repair, Firewall Pro, Spyware Remover.

For more information visit our website

Thank you for choosing us, the worldwide leader in computer protection software.

Sincerely,

David Matthews
Antivirus Protection

If you want to stop receiving mail, please go to:
http://daily-online–enews.org/

 

or you may contact us at the following address:

 

Plaza Neptuno, local #7
Via ricardo J Alfaro, Tumba Muerto
Panama Ciudad
Republica de Panama

Example #4:

Download iTunes 2009
Join the millions of users who are enjoying iTunes today.

Download iTunes Now

iTunes is the absolute best software for all of your multimedia needs and the only program to use for your iPod.
With iTunes you will be able to shop for your favourite songs online, picking and choosing only the songs that you want.
iTunes combines all of the features and services you are looking for with an easy to use interface.

Review All of the Features

-iTunes Movie Rentals
-iPod video converter
-iPod movie codec pack
-Interactive video guides

Rip and copy your favourite audio CDs to your iTunes library.
Easily create audio CD’s from your iTunes library.
Convert your DVD collection and transfer the files to your iPod.

Download iTunes Today

24/7 Customer Support
Windows VISTA ready- 98Me2000XP Compatible

Thank you for your interest,

Greg Matthews
Customer Relations

If you want to stop receiving mail, please go to:
http://daily–new–product.org/

 

or you may contact us at the following address:

 

Plaza Neptuno, local #7
Via ricardo J Alfaro, Tumba Muerto
Panama Ciudad
Republica de Panama

Anything look familiar between #3 and #4?