Cybersecurity Blog

Brazen phishing email asks for passport information – 12/17/18

 

This week a new phishing email is popping up in Mount Royal inboxes. The cheeky criminals are coming right out and asking for passport details as well as other personal information. They don’t even bother with links or fancy look a like web pages.  They just ask for your information so they can send you money.  The email looks like this:

 

 

Because this is a low tech scam, people tend to let their guard down and be more receptive to getting hooked. The scammers count on this and hope the victim gets excited enough about the possibility of getting free money to give up their personal information.  Once they have it, they can use to to steal their identity and wreak havoc on their life.

This is definitely a case of, if it seems too good to be true then it probably is. No bank will email you out of the blue to ask you for passport information. If you refuse to accept reality and want to cling onto hope, then contact the bank directly to ask them if they are trying to transfer you some money.  Don’t ever send personal information like passport, driver’s license or credit card information in an email.

 

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