Among the new versions released by the FBI, is an e-mail claiming to be from the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) & the government of the United Kingdom. The individuals involved give titles to the names of people listed in the e-mail that are not part of the Internet Crime Complaint Center, to make it appear official. The other two fake e-mails claim they are from the Bank of England & the Metropolitan Police (U.K.).
The e-mails tell the individual that they will get a refund worth thousands of dollars. It is then told, the refunds will be sent via bank wire transfer from the “bank of England [sic]” once the victim signs a “fund release order.” The e-mails also warn that a failure to sign that order will put said funds on hold & a penalty will be applied.
The FBI has a list of items to look for to help detect a fraudulent e-mail:
* Multiple spelling errors.
* Poor grammar.
* Government agency names.
* Signatures of officials & titles to appear authentic.
* Warning for failure to comply.
The FBI also recommends that you should consider the following:
* Do not respond to unsolicited (SPAM) e-mail.
* Be skeptical of individuals representing themselves as officials soliciting personal information via e-mail.
* Do not click on links contained within an unsolicited e-mail.
* Be cautious of e-mail claiming to contain pictures in attached files, as the files may contain viruses. Only open attachments from known senders.
* Validate the legitimacy of the organization by directly accessing the organization's website rather than following an alleged link to the site.
* Do not provide personal or financial information to anyone who solicits information.