Local Government
Don't get hooked by email 'Phishing' scam
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- Category: Walsall Council
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Scammers are targeting computer users with bogus emails, bosses from Walsall Council trading standards warn.
Residents who carry out their banking online are being targeted by internet fraudsters who send fake emails called 'Phishing' in which the recipient is asked to provide personal information so that their account can be verified.
These types of emails usually purport to be from a bank or a building society and ask you to follow the link in the email and enter your internet log on details to confirm them.
The link provided is not genuine and these details allow the fraudster to have access to your bank or building society account.
Residents are being urged to be on their guard if they receive emails from a foreign bank or solicitors advising that a client has died and they have a large amount of cash to disperse.
Similar emails, claiming to be from HM Revenue & Customs, claim that the receiver is entitled to a tax repayment.
"We've seen an increase in the use of email and internet scams in recent years," says John Beavon, trading standards manager at Walsall Council.
"They appear to be genuine and professional but are designed to do one thing: to extract money or personal details from the recipient.
"I thought I'd seen them all until one resident recently forwarded us an email they'd received from a British 'soldier' serving with the 40th Regiment Royal Artillery in Afghanistan.
"In the email, the soldier claims to have stumbled across a black van in the war zone which contains $16 million US Dollars and invites the recipient to 'claim' his share.
"These tactics are unbelievable and the obvious advice in this instance is to delete all emails and don't respond but forward the email to our trading standards team."
Bogus callers and rogue traders appear to be changing their tactics to gain access to homeowners' properties.
There have been reported instances of callers claiming they are collecting for charities or doing a sponsored event. Residents are advised to check the identity of the caller and never allow access to their home if they're unsure who's at their door.
Walsall Trading Standards, together with West Midlands Police launched Operation Doorstop last year, to help protect vulnerable residents from rogue traders and bogus callers.
If you are suspicious of people calling at your door in your neighbourhood, please call Walsall Trading Standards on 08454 04 05 06 or West Midlands Police on 0845 113 5000.
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