Scams, scams & more scams

SteveL
SteveL Club Member Posts: 12,303 ✭✭✭
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edited February 2016 in General Chat #1

We, as I'm sure you all do, receive our fair share of scam emails. So far they have always been very obvious, as was the latest one. The strange thing was we had, according to the addresses, sent it to ourselves. It contained an attachment that had apparently been virus cleaned because it was infected. The header indicated it was an invoice, again not unusual. Of course I did not open the attachment, just disposed of it, as I always do. I just wonder how they had managed to make it look as though I had sent it to myself? Clearly a ploy to make you feel safer and more likely to open the attachment.

Comments

  • Rocky 2 buckets
    Rocky 2 buckets Forum Participant Posts: 7,101
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    edited February 2016 #2

    Steve, they get ever creativeSad, luckily we have the best defence available-our brain, backed up by varying degrees of common sense. Cynicism
    plays a part too. My default position is-'it's a scam' then the rest is used prior to opening anything.

  • Fisherman
    Fisherman Forum Participant Posts: 2,367
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    edited February 2016 #3

    Had one yesterday purported from my brother.Everything looked OK but the e mail address was slightly different to my brothers. Took the precaution to change my various pass words and PINS just in case.

  • HelenandTrevor
    HelenandTrevor Forum Participant Posts: 3,221
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    edited February 2016 #4

    At work,  have started to receive emails that say our invoice is attached, I didn't recognise the sender so luckily didn't open the attachment,  just Deleted User email. Could so easily have opened it. Frown

  • redface
    redface Forum Participant Posts: 1,701
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    edited February 2016 #5

    i think I would find it a bit difficult to keep on changing my passwords and Pins. Would take nearly all ady. So far, fingers crossed, I've spotted the scams and Deleted User them all and my security has weeded out the malware. Yes, you certainly have to be on
    the ball these days.

  • Vicmallows
    Vicmallows Forum Participant Posts: 580
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    edited February 2016 #6

     'The attachment to this email has been cleaned of a virus'  seems to be the latest gimmick ....have had around a dozen in the last week.   It is surely so pathetic that someone must be just having a laugh? No idea if the attachments are actually dangerous
    ..... and not intending to try to find out!

    There also seems to be a fresh rash of address book entries being hacked.  (emails purporting to come from people you know but containing spam links).  Thought these had died out of boredom several years ago.

  • JillwithaJay
    JillwithaJay Club Member Posts: 2,485 ✭✭
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    edited February 2016 #7

    It's tedious I know but, whenever I get spam emails, I move them to Junk and then block the sender.  It's one less to get through a second time.  Happy

    300 siggy photo 6b161378-22ab-47bd-97dd-22af5e8f67ba_zpsbtkpqljt.jpg

  • tigerfish
    tigerfish Forum Participant Posts: 1,362
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    edited February 2016 #8

    Thanks Jill, that last bit about remembering to block the sender is helpful, I have not done that untill now.

    TF

  • ValDa
    ValDa Forum Participant Posts: 3,004
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    edited February 2016 #9

    I've had one from Regal Furnishings this morning.  They're the company who do caravan re-upholstery, and we have had a quote from them for altering our Adria cushions and splitting them.

    This was definitely a scam email -  and had a very dubious attachment - but beware anyone, who is currently having genuine dealing with Regal, that you don't receive similar scam emails.

  • redface
    redface Forum Participant Posts: 1,701
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    edited February 2016 #10

    Is nothing sacred anymore?  I was surprised to find that SAGA had apparently sold our details to a shirt manufacturer Charles Tywritt (or similar.)  How long before they sell my email adddress to anyone else?

    I certainly won't be buying a holiday from that company again!

    I would have thought that Acromas Holidays (Saga) could keep customer details confidential.

  • Rocky 2 buckets
    Rocky 2 buckets Forum Participant Posts: 7,101
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    edited February 2016 #11

    RF, they couch it in words like-'we may share your details with trusted partners' that means they'll flog you to the highest bidderYell. If you
    see that read the small print, it will also be couched in legalise that you can't understand, yup it's sharp practiceSad

  • Blackdeath
    Blackdeath Forum Participant Posts: 69
    edited February 2016 #12

    I expect that somewhere on the Saga website was a miniscule box with writing less than a millimetre high which asked you to 'tick here' to stop them doing it. Most organisations, including Saga, make a fair bit of income flogging members details to other
    organisations

  • cyberyacht
    cyberyacht Forum Participant Posts: 10,218
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    edited February 2016 #13

    I wondered why I had one today. Now I know.

  • SteveL
    SteveL Club Member Posts: 12,303 ✭✭✭
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    edited February 2016 #14

    I expect that somewhere on the Saga website was a miniscule box with writing less than a millimetre high which asked you to 'tick here' to stop them doing it. Most organisations, including Saga, make a fair bit of income flogging members details to other
    organisations

    It is one of the reasons we deal with as few companies as possible online. Unless the saving is significant, I would rather buy from someone I have dealt with before, and pay a couple of pounds more, rather than add my details to yet another site.