Know a SCAM when you see it…
Did you know, that almost 50% of the hundreds of billions of emails that are sent and received daily are deemed as spam? Although email services like Gmail or Outlook are great at catching junk and sending it to the spam folder, some of it can get through. Some of what gets through is not just unsolicited emails, but SCAMS. I am going to share just two simple tips to help guard yourself from email scams.
Here is an example of spam/scam that recently came to my personal email inbox.
The Subject line (Meta for Business) and the From name (Meta for Business) make the email seem like a legitimate notification from Meta (Facebook) warning me that I may go to Facebook jail for some reason.
Tip 1: Check the Mail Server section of the email (or the part following @). Notice the email subject and name make it seem like it is coming from Meta, but the mail server is @thenewsynergyspecialist.com. Why would The New Synergy Specialist be emailing me a warning about a Meta violation? Also, check out the username part of the email... that is a dead giveaway that this is spam.
Next, new chamber member, Friends of the Manor Charitable Trust, recently forwarded me the email below.
I am happy this was forwarded so that I could include it in this month's scam topic. As a chamber member, you may have received a similar email! Anita was correct in sending it to me and then marking it spam.
Tip 2: Still not sure if it is spam or a scam? Send it to someone who might know! This email was selling chamber information (which members already have access to) and there was no one better to forward it to than the chamber director to see what was going on.
Did you receive a letter in the mail stating your domain name is expiring and to renew it would cost $295? Before you pay, ask your web guy, or tech support! It doesn't hurt to forward your suspicious email just to be sure you aren't being fooled.
So, just by checking the email address and forwarding it to someone who might be able to comment on the validity, you can avoid becoming the next victim of the latest email scam.
Sincerely,
Benjamin Beck, Executive Director
