Softpedia
 

NEWS CATEGORIES:



NEWS ARCHIVE >>
SOFTPEDIA REVIEWS >>
MEET THE EDITORS >>
Home > News > Security > Incidents

May 26th, 2008, 07:47 GMT · By Bogdan Popa

Legitimate Bank Email Used in Phishing Scam

SHARE:

Adjust text size:


Phishers now turn to telephones in order to get private details
Enlarge picture
Today's phishers have pretty advanced techniques and today's report comes to support this statement. According to Port Clinton News Herald, a phisher used an
email account belonging to First National Bank of Bellevue in order to send phishing emails to its customers. As usual, the main goal of the scam was to trick users into disclosing their private financial details such as account numbers and security credentials.

However, the way the scam worked is a little bit different than the traditional ones, asking users to visit a certain website. This time, the phisher attempted to access a phone line which, when used, requested callers to reactivate their bank accounts, demanding private details.

Police officers are already tracking down the phone number, but there's no word on how many people failed victims to the scam. However, in case somebody disclosed important information, he is recommended to call the Port Clinton police at (419) 734-3121, Port Clinton News Herald added.

"It looks to be legitimate because it's coming from the bank's e-mail. We're seeing it everywhere between here and Sandusky. People should not respond to that e-mail," Detective Bob Case of Port Clinton police commented.

Traditional phishing scams have proved to be pretty dangerous, especially for people who don't have any protection against this kind of illegal activity. However, even with the appropriate one, it's quite difficult to stay on the safe side against this type of phishing scam unless you notice it's dangerous and you must not disclose your banking information.

Most anti-phishing applications usually block malicious websites but, since in today's case readers are asked to call a phone number, such protection would be useless. Moreover, anti-spam filters would also be of no help because the phisher gave a legitimate bank account, supposed to be trusted by most users. That's why extra-care is recommended whenever you're asked to provide your banking information. However, keep in mind that most services, companies and organizations never ask for your sensitive details!

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK:

1,682 hits · Link to this article · Print article · Send to friend · Subscribe to news

MUST-READ RELATED ARTICLES:


Fake US Tax Court Email Drops Keyloggers

ING Direct Bank Offers Free Security Application

Apple Phished for the First Time in History

Symantec Debuts Online Fraud Protection

International Crime Ring Busted by US and Romanian Police

READER COMMENTS:



No user comments yet.
Be the first to express your opinion!
Copyright © 2001-2012 Softpedia. Contact/Tip us at

WindowsGamesDriversMacLinuxScriptsMobileHandheldNews

SUBMIT PROGRAM   |   ADVERTISE   |   GET HELP   |   SEND US FEEDBACK   |   RSS FEEDS   |   UPDATE YOUR SOFTWARE   |   ROMANIAN FORUM