BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU WARNS ABOUT A PHISHING SCAM

The AP reports, "Companies in Nebraska and across the nation are being warned to be on the lookout for bogus e-mails supposedly sent by the Better Business Bureau." According to the story, "the e-mail's subject line includes a nine-digit complaint number," and the text of the message "claims that the recipient didn't respond to a complaint filed by 'Jason Harlow'" or other name. If the link is opened, "malware is downloaded." See the AP story by going to http://www.krvn.com/news/index/7019ed14-95d8-4c5b-97c5-c50df2a63b59>

BEWARE: ANOTHER SCAM

Watch out for this scam. I have had a client that received the following email. Remember, the IRS never sends notices by email.

See www.snopes.com for more information.

Taxpayer ID: name-00000174073547US
Tax Type: INCOME TAX
Issue: Unreported/Underreported Income (Fraud Application)

Please review your tax statement on Internal Revenue Service (IRS) website (click on the link below):

review tax statement for taxpayer id: name-00000174073547US

Internal Revenue Service

IRS ALERTS PUBLIC TO NEW IDENTITY THEFT SCAMS

Summertime brings no relief from phony e-mails that claim to come from the IRS, but which really come from scammers trying to steal the identity of the e-mail recipients.

Check out this recent IRS alert.

WATCH OUT FOR FRAUDULENT IRS EMAILS

I don't think that there is anything scarier for a taxpayer than a letter, call or email from the IRS. Knowing this, crooks use the fear of the IRS to illegally get personal information or cash. As a reminder...

Be aware of e-mail scams that fraudulently use the IRS name or Logo as a lure. The goal of the scam is to trick people into revealing personal and financial information, such as Social Security, bank account or credit card numbers, which the scammers can use to commit identity theft and steal your money.

The IRS does not send unsolicited e-mails about a person’s tax account or ask for detailed personal and financial information. Additionally, the IRS never asks people for their PIN numbers, passwords or similar secret access information for their credit card, bank or other financial accounts.

In addition, Snopes had the following article about criminals phishing for information.

http://www.snopes.com/fraud/phishing/irsrefund.asp

WATCH OUT FOR THESE NEW PHONE AND EMAIL SCAMS

Just another reminder to not give out private information to anyone that calls you on the phone.

The latest one is a Jury Duty Scam. I have personally gone out to the FBI website to verify this report.

This scam appears to be spreading fast so be prepared should you get this call. Most of us take those summonses for jury duty seriously, but enough people skip out on their civic duty that a new and ominous kind of fraud has surfaced. The caller claims to be a jury coordinator. If you protest that you never received a summons for jury duty, the scammer asks you for your Social Security number and date of birth so he or she can verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant. Give out any of this information and bingo; your identity was just stolen. The fraud has been reported so far in 11 states, including Oklahoma, Illinois, and Colorado. This swindle is particularly insidious because they use intimidation over the phone to try to bully people into giving information by pretending they are with the court system. The FBI and the federal court system have issued nationwide alerts on their web sites, warning consumers about the fraud.

Don't believe me, check it out here:
http://www.fbi.gov/page2/june06/jury_scams060206.htm http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/juryduty.asp
http://www.truthorfiction.com/

FRAUDULENT GRAND JURY SUMMONS CONTAINING MALWARE

04/17/08—The IC3 warns consumers of recently reported spam e-mail containing a fraudulent subpoena notifying recipients they are commanded to appear and testify before a Grand Jury. The e-mail attempts to appear authentic by containing a court case number, federal code, name and address of a California federal court, court room number, issuing officers’ names, and a court seal. Recipients are directed to click the link provided in the e-mail in order to download and print associated information for their records. If the recipient clicks the link, malicious code is downloaded onto their computer.

The e-mail also contains language threatening recipients with contempt of court charges if they fail to appear. Recipients are also told the subpoena will remain in effect until the court grants a release. As with most spam, the content contains multiple spelling errors.

If you receive this type of notification and are unsure of its authenticity, you should contact the issuing court for validation.

Be aware; if you receive an unsolicited e-mail, especially from an unknown sender, it is recommended you do not open it. If you do open the e-mail, do not click any embedded links, as they may contain a virus or malware.

If you have received an e-mail similar to this, please file a complaint at www.ic3.gov.