Red alert issued over email scam in Hampshire
10:19am Saturday 7th July 2012 in News
By Julian Robinson, Eastleigh Chief Reporter
Red alert issued over email scam
COMPUTER users in the New Forest have been put on red alert over a series of email scams.
Fraudsters have contacted vulnerable email users under the guise of lottery winners, a bank and a telecoms company in a bid to gain access to the recipient’s personal details.
One man was told he was being “gifted” a £3m share of a Euromillions payout by a couple who had decided to dish out part of their fortune to randomly selected individuals.
Another email scam purported to come from NatWest Internet banking customer support and is entitled “Issue with your online banking”.
It claims the recipient’s online access to their bank account has been suspended and gives a website link “to restore access”.
The third scam appeared to be from British Telecom and claimed that the recipient’s broadband was faulty, supplying a bogus form to fill in with a new password.
Jill Cleary, New Forest District Council portfolio holder for housing and communities, said: “The number of online scams appears to be escalating and I would urge all computer users to be very wary
of any dubious emails, even if they appear to come from a company you use.
“Please check it out by phoning the appropriate company and never give your bank details, password or other personal details online unless you are using a secure site that you know is genuine.
“You could lose money and become a victim of identity fraud.”
The warning was issued by the Safer New Forest Partnership after the scams were brought to the attention of Hythe and Dibden Parish Council.
If you believe you have been targeted in an email, you should report the matter to your bank or card issuer as soon as possible.
You can also contact Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or online at actionfraud.police.uk.
Comments(10)
OSPREYSAINT
says…
10:39am Sat 7 Jul 12
If it sounds too good to be true, it will be just that, we are being plagued by these internet maggots and there seems to be no attempt to stop them.
OSPREYSAINT
Linesman
says…
10:48am Sat 7 Jul 12
I cannot understand how people think that they can be winners if they have not bought a ticket.
Have they never heard of the old expression, ‘There’s no such thing as a free dinner’?
Linesman
Sir Ad E Noid
says…
11:16am Sat 7 Jul 12
Not everybody is as clever as you. These emails are targeted at the vulnerable members of our society who, perhaps, do not have the stamina or thought process to resist these “free dinners”. Parasites and maggots these scammers are, but things are not going to change any time soon. Sadly.
Sir Ad E Noid
The Salv
says…
11:31am Sat 7 Jul 12
These crimes are mostly commited by foreign criminals.
The Salv
ju_ju68
says…
11:38am Sat 7 Jul 12
This does not really sound like news to me, I get at least 1 email a week like this, from a someone who is pretending to be a bank, or a lottery I realise that some people are taken in by them but the best thing to do is ignore all of them, if it is important they will find another way of contacting you. Unfortunately with the internet this is always going to happen, but not really a news story!
ju_ju68
OSPREYSAINT
says…
12:51pm Sat 7 Jul 12
[quote][p][bold]The Salv[/bold] wrote:
These crimes are mostly commited by foreign criminals.[/p][/quote]..and the one that takes you for a sucker will be a good old fashioned English crook?
OSPREYSAINT
IronLady2010
says…
2:36pm Sat 7 Jul 12
These scammers are sending millions of emails, why can’t ISP’s pick up on this and block these emails before they are sent?
They can easily block us downloading pirate software etc when it suits.
IronLady2010
Sir Ad E Noid
says…
2:38pm Sat 7 Jul 12
[quote][p][bold]The Salv[/bold] wrote:
These crimes are mostly commited by foreign criminals.[/p][/quote]Complete rubbish. Who is responsible for the vast majority of the “Land Bank” scams? Nigerian? Spanish? No, they are all home grown. Yes some scams are overseas parasites having a go, but look to home soil for the majority of scams. A request, please call me a troll, I love it when you call me that.
Sir Ad E Noid
The Mad Dog
says…
3:12pm Sat 7 Jul 12
[quote][p][bold]Sir Ad E Noid[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]The Salv[/bold] wrote:
These crimes are mostly commited by foreign criminals.[/p][/quote]Complete rubbish. Who is responsible for the vast majority of the “Land Bank” scams? Nigerian? Spanish? No, they are all home grown. Yes some scams are overseas parasites having a go, but look to home soil for the majority of scams. A request, please call me a troll, I love it when you call me that.[/p][/quote]Where are ‘land bank’ scams mentioned?
The Slav is quite correct, the majority, if not all, email scams (which is what the report refers to) come from abroad. That puts them outside UK law and virtually untraceable/untoucha
ble.
The Mad Dog
Stillness
says…
3:46pm Sat 7 Jul 12
[quote][p][bold]The Salv[/bold] wrote:
These crimes are mostly commited by foreign criminals.[/p][/quote]Snore……..Snore..
…..Snore……
Stillness
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