Fraud Alert!
There has been a rise in global wire fraud attempts, reported by Bank of America/Merrill Lynch
This fraud alert is driven by email phishing scams.
Phishing type email frequently get through many of the spam blockers because they don’t contain any virus, and appear to be coming from legitimate financial institutions.
The FBI has released a PSA (Public Service Announcement) with examples of this type of fraud, and it is worth reading.
Download FBI Phishing Public Service Announcement
Phishing is when you receive an email that looks like it came from a legitimate sender, and it directs you to another website that then asks you to confirm information that could then be used in identity theft.
If EVER you receive an email asking for personal information, verify the source of the email, if you are unsure, call the sender.
Over $250,000,000 has been scammed from American consumers in 2014 alone. This figure is only what was reported to the FBI, the real numbers are likely an order of magnitude higher.
Protect yourself.
Ralph & Gil.