by 14 people |
Have you been getting those emails that seem a bit off, but have you nervous anyway? The ones telling you that you have just made a payment of $455.92 to Michael Gonzales from your paypal account or that there is suspicious activity on your credit card and you need to verify a transaction immediately or they will suspend your account? You probably already know they are scams. Those letters are the bait and you are the hunted - thieves are "phishing" for your personal information every day of the week.
There are thousands of places to tell you how to avoid 'phishing' - this isn't one of them. (In fact, virtually every company that deals with money provides a list of what to look for to identify suspicious email). Obviously, you don't want to get caught in someone's trap, but have you ever wondered if there is something else you can do? Something that may cause those emails to cease forever?
Well, no promises here, but if we all forward the scam email we get to the appropriate authorities, we will at least be doing our part. In doing this, I have found that it is usually difficult to simply figure out where to report fraudulant emails.
What I am doing is slowly compiling a list so it won't be necessary to go to the FAQ of a different website every time someone tried to catch you - hook, line, and sinker.
Where Do I Report Phishing?
or How to Be a Boy Scout
- Federal Trade Commission
- First and foremost, any and all phishing letters (and actually anything you suspect is a scam) should be emailed to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at spam@uce.gov.
[Fun Fact = UCE stands for Unsolicited Commercial Email] - Internet Crime Complaint Center
- All internet scams can also be reported to the Internet Crime Complaint Center, but it isn't as straightforward as forwarding an email. You need to go to http://www.ic3.gov/ and follow the instructions there.
The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C).
IC3's mission is to serve as a vehicle to receive, develop, and refer criminal complaints regarding the rapidly expanding arena of cyber crime. The IC3 gives the victims of cyber crime a convenient and easy-to-use reporting mechanism that alerts authorities of suspected criminal or civil violations. For law enforcement and regulatory agencies at the federal, state, local and international level, IC3 provides a central referral mechanism for complaints involving Internet related crimes.
Credit Cards
Where to Send Fraudulant Email if It Looks Like It's from a Credit Card Company
- American Express
- forward suspicious email to: Anti.Phishing.Team@aexp.com
- CitiBank
- forward suspicious email to: emailspoof@citigroup.com
- Chase Bank
- forward suspicious email to: abuse@chase.com
- Discover Card
- Hurrah! You can now forward spam and/or phishing letters to emailwatch@discoverfinancial.com. (Thank you Sunyshine for the updated information.)
Banks
Where to Send a Fraudulent Email that Looks Like It's from a Bank
- Bank of America
- Please forward fraudulent email to: abuse@bankofamerica.com
I think B of A might need a better search system. When I searched for "phishing," nothing came up. When I searched for "spoof," I was led to their "Types of Fraud" page which gave me their above address. When I searched for "scam," though, I got a page that didn't have the email information and said (in part) "E-mail can be used for sending scams such as a false offer from a company or an alert to a false computer virus. These e-mails are often forwarded with good intention by friends, adding an erroneous level of legitimacy. If you receive an e-mail that you think could be a scam, do not forward it and delete it immediately. If you receive an e-mail warning that a new computer virus is circulating, check the Web site of any one of the well-known anti-virus software companies for validation." - Bank of Ridgeway
- At this time, there is no address to which you should forward your suspicious emails.
(7/25/06) I got four emails in a ten hour period telling me of a new security update at Bank of Ridgeway and I should register my computer. Right. Bank of Ridgeway is a small but well established South Carolina bank and surprisingly, they have their phone numbers listed at each of their three branches. What they don't have is an email you can forward your emails to. I suspect that this may change if they begin to be deluged with customer questions about these emails. If I find out more, I will keep you updated. - Branch Banking and Trust
- I couldn't find an email address to forward fraudulent email, so I called BB&T and the woman I spoke with, Melissa, said that they were aware of the problem, but didn't want email forwarded to them. Curious. I still forwarded the spam to the spam@uce.gov address listed above.
- Capital One
- Please forward fraudulent email to:
abuse@capitalone.com. - Fifth Third Bank
- Forward Fifth Third phishing to 53investigation@security.53.com.
I got two emails from phishing phakers at work today, both claiming to be from Fifth Third. Both looked fairly legit, especially with the FDIC logo and even apologized for the inconvenience. Tell tale sign #1? They didn't use my name. Tell take sign #2? I don't have an account with Fifth Third. Oddly, there is no email address listed on their website, but there is a phone number. When I called it said to report phishing emails to the above address. - HSBC USA
- Please forward fraudulent email to: usphishing@us.hsbc.com
- Key Bank
- Forward suspicious email to emailfraud@keybank.com.
- MidAmerica Bank
- Please forward fraudulent email to: custserv@midamericabank.com.
- Sun Trust Bank
- This page takes you to Sun Trust Bank's Fraud Page, which is very thorough. If you are just interested in reporting a phishing expedition, email reportfraud@suntrust.com.
- TCF Bank - Email Fraud
- Based in Minnesota, TCF Bank also serves Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Colorado, and Indiana. Someone went phishing in my work account pretending to be them (July 06), so I am adding them to my list. This link will bring you to their page that urges you to "Protect yourself against online and email fraud." I am not listing the email that they provide to forward suspicious emails to because the email I forwarded got bounced back to me. When I find one that links, I will update the information here.
- Wachovia
- Please forward fraudulent email to: abuse@wachovia.com
- Washington Mutual
- Please forward suspicious email to: spoof@wamu.com
- Wells Fargo
- Please forward fraudulent email to: reportphish@wellsfargo.com
- Citizen's Bank
- Please forward fraudulent email to: fraudprevention@citizensbank.com
Neither Fish Nor Fowl
Phishers will pretend to be from other sites, too
- eBay
- forward suspicious mail to: spoof@ebay.com
- The IRS
- The IRS never initiates contact with taxpayers through email. Let me repeat that. The IRS NEVER initiates contact with taxpayers through email.
If you get anything that claims to be from them, send it to phishing@irs.gov. - PayPal
- forward suspicious email to: spoof@paypal.com
- National Credit Union Administration
- Suspicious email should be forwarded, in full, to Phishing@ncua.gov.
- E*Trade
- Report suspicious email to onlinesecurity@etrade.com
Protect Yourself!
Books on how to avoid being phished
Scam-Proof Your Life: 377 Smart Ways to Protect You & Your Family from Ripoffs, Bogus Deals & Other Consumer Headaches (AARP)
Amazon Price: $10.36 (as of 11/11/2009) 
Phishing Exposed
I've tried to find more up-to-date books that are also highly rated, but I guess they got it right the first time, because this is still a best seller.
Amazon Price: $41.67 (as of 11/11/2009)
Deception: From Ancient Empires to Internet Dating
This isn't about phishing, per se, but it looks fascinating.
Amazon Price: $25.51 (as of 11/11/2009)
Phishing: Cutting the Identity Theft Line
Amazon Price: $29.99 (as of 11/11/2009)
Counter Hack Reloaded: A Step-by-Step Guide to Computer Attacks and Effective Defenses (2nd Edition)
A Step-by-Step Guide to Computer Attacks and Effective Defenses (2nd Edition). This book is for the more hard core among you.
Amazon Price: $40.94 (as of 11/11/2009)
Things I'd Rather Not Know
News Articles
- Phishers could start using the personal touch - New Scientist Tech
- You'll need a subscription to read the whole article but this gives you the first few paragraphs of the latest on what phishers are up to. A graphic that goes with the article mentions that two thirds of phishing expeditions (attacks) come from the USA.
- ID Theft: More Hype Than Harm
- Actually, I like knowing this. Law enforcement officials say the criminals tend not to follow through after stealing personal data.
What You Say
Have a phishing story of your own to tell? Or a suggestion? Here is where you have your say.
rickeyharrod wrote...
Why is it the FBI does not ever hold the companies responsible for people using there websites, email addresses, etc... for fraud?
Look I know fraud cannot be completely stopped. But come own now email fraud could be greatly reduced if these internet services that provide email address domains would make every client provided verifiable information on every account opened. Most of these people have numerous email addresses and just change them when questioned about fraud and start all over again.
Do not you think it is time for the FBI to hold these internet companies accountable, arrested, and fined for contributing to these frauds? I mean if you were driving the getaway vehicle that the bank robbers left the bank they just robbed, the driver would be an accessory to the bank robbery.
What is the difference?
Owe they have money and power over the way laws are disbursed in the world.
Wakeup FBI ( and all the other law enforcement agencies) and government agencies.
Posted September 23, 2009
sunyshine wrote...
FYI everybody - I just got off of the phone with Discover Card. First I spoke to an agent, then they transferred me to somebody in the security department. They must have changed their policy since you created this list, as they told me to forward spam and/or phishing letters to the following e-mail address: emailwatch@discoverfinancial.com.
They were amazed that I took the time to inform them, since I'm not a customer, but I think it's important to do what you can :)
Posted May 13, 2009
triathlontraining wrote...
Excellent info here! Great job! I usually report them via Firefox, which then will warn people that are using the browser, if they happen upon the site. :)
Posted May 22, 2008
Books on Deception in General
Stress Management for Dummies
Amazon Price: $13.59 (as of 11/11/2009)
The Relaxation & Stress Reduction Workbook (New Harbinger Self-Help Workbook)
Amazon Price: $14.93 (as of 11/11/2009)
The Stress Management Handbook: Strategies for Health and Inner Peace
Amazon Price: $10.85 (as of 11/11/2009)
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by Einsteinium
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