My Dad called me the other morning because he received an email that appeared to be from The Geek Squad. They wanted him to renew his account, but he had never been a member before. I told him it was most likely another email scam — delete the email and don’t respond.
Fraudulent emails like the one he received are designed to deceive. They mimic the look and feel from legitimate companies, asking you to confirm a charge. Or they are written in a way that urges an emotional response, like an email from a “friend” who is on an unannounced trip to a foreign country and just got mugged and needs you to send money. Maybe it’s a tantalizing chance to inherit funds from a long-lost relative. All of these are pretenses to get you to respond so bad actors can steal information or money from you.
That got me thinking that there are a few tell-tale signs of email scams, designed to trick people into believing they are official and legitimate. But, with a little sleuthing, these subterfuges become much easier to spot. After compiling a few tips to send to my Dad, I figured they might be handy for others as well.
Who is it from? Who is it addressed to?
First of all, always look at the return address. Not just the name, but the email address. If it’s not from the address associated with the sender (like paypal.com), it’s probably fraudulent. The same goes if it’s an unusual email from a “friend” asking for emergency funds. Look for variations and lookalikes (like pay-pal.com), including 0 (zero) for O (capital O), foreign accents (like påypal.com), incorrect domains (like paypal.googlecloud.com), and characters that are in a different font (like pɑypɑl.com) – those a’s are unicode characters that do not have the same value as their standard counterparts.
Then check to whom the is email addressed? Is it to “Recipients” or someone else other than you? If your email address is in the To: field, does it include your correct name? In the body of the email, is the email addressed to your name? Legitimate emails will include your name and or account number. Fraudulent emails are addressed to “Customer” or something else generic. If you don’t recognize the sender or company associated with the email, then it’s also probably fraudulent.
Resist the urge to click
Most importantly, avoid clicking on links in unfamiliar emails. If an email from a sender you don’t recognize has a link to customer service or billing or to refuse a charge or make a payment or anything similar, it is unwise to click on it. Doing so could cause all kinds of problems, including sharing your sensitive personal information, infecting your computer with a virus, and losing your money to scammers. In the same vein, do not call phone numbers from senders you are unsure of. The people who answer these numbers are trained to manipulate you to extract access to your compter, your financial information and other sensitive information. You should avoid talking to them whenever possible.
Finally, there are certain things legitimate emails should never ask for. These include asking you to make payments with store-bought gift cards or cryptocurrency, to provide your account details, credit card numbers, or your computer passwords. All of these should be red flags that they are probably email scams. An even bigger red flag is being pressured to act quickly.
Other ways to protect from email scams
Just about all email applications and browsers will let you hover over links to see what the link’s address is. If you enable this function, use the same standards as the return address of the email to screen out fakes. Always approach unfamiliar links with caution.
For an extra layer of security, you can change the default preferences of your email program or web portal to prevent images in emails from loading automatically. The reason you would do this is because senders can tell when you view the images and that lets them know your email address is valid. They will continue to send deceptive emails to the address in hopes you will take the bait. But, if you turn on this setting, you will see blank spaces in place of the images as you view your email. If you trust the sender and want to see the images, you will see a link at the top of the message you can click to display them.
Get more help
If you ever think your account or personal information have been compromised in any way, visit the site of the company directly. Use your normal method to log into your account and verify the accuracy of the information or contact customer service for help. Learn what to do if you’ve been the victim of email scams.
In conclusion, by following these suggestions, you will cut down on your exposure to fraudulent email and bad actors trying to access your information and finances. For even more information how to avoid email fraud, visit the Cyberstructure & Infrastructure Security Agency for more tips.
Adam Gillitt is the Publisher of the Alameda Post. Reach him at [email protected]. His writing is collected at AlamedaPost.com/Adam-Gillitt.
