SCAMS
What do I do if I suspect I’ve received a fraudulent e-mail message?
There are currently several e-mail messages in circulation, claiming to be from financial or retail businesses, requesting customers verify their personal or financial information. Although these messages may look legitimate, they are actually attempts to collect information for the purpose of committing fraud. Some recent phishing scams claim to be from Royal Bank, eBay and SouthTrust Bank.
Tips on how to spot and avoid phishing scams:
· If you do not know the source of the e-mail or if it looks suspicious in any way, do not open it.
· Do not provide your confidential and financial information over the Internet in response to unsolicited requests you receive.
· Contact your bank or credit card company if you have unwittingly supplied personal or financial information.
· You should also report it to info@phonebusters.com and supply the full header information from the original e-mail.
· After the fraud has been reported, please delete it from your inbox and deleted items folder.
· Do not respond to an unexpected Web page or pop-up window appearing to be from a legitimate company requesting that you provide confidential information for a purpose that seems legitimate.
· Do not click on a link contained in e-mail that you suspect may be fraudulent. The link could take you to a fake Web site or initiate the installation of harmful software to your computer.
· If you submit confidential or financial information online, always ensure that the Web site you are communicating with is secure. Check for a security symbol such as a closed padlock in your browser screen and the URL in the browser address bar should start with "https:" rather than just "http".
· Check the phishing scam for misspelled words.
For more information on spotting and dealing with these messages, please click the link to the right.
(Submitted by Paul - January 28, 2006)
MTO has been informed by the OPP, Kingston Police, Bell Canada and Phone Busters, that there is a TELEPHONE SCAM that is currently circulating through Eastern Ontario. The call comes through to you from an automated calling system and informs the recipient as being a winner of a 4-day vacation in Orlando, Florida (or something similar to that effect). The recipient is then asked to press '9' on their telephone set. By pressing '9', you'll be connecting to a premium line that will automatically bill your ministry phone number a substantial charge.
Please disconnect immediately by hanging
up.
Do NOT press '9'
What to do if you receive any CALL, where you are asked for any personal information:
1) Do not give out any personal or work related information
to the caller
2) Disconnect the call
(Submitted by Paul - February 27, 2005)