Wednesday, March 30, 2005
Let’s Identify the Fundamental Problem
It’s really quite simple, and if people realized how simple it was, IM phishing wouldn’t be a problem. I’ve never once heard of a legit company communicating with you—especially for important matters—via IM. And I can sure as hell tell you that I would absolutely not patronize a company that did. IM is less secure than e-mail—and we all know e-mail is about as secure as painting a message on a downtown billboard.
Regardless, however, if an information request comes to you via e-mail, IM, or from a monkey’s butt, it’s suspect. Confirm by calling the company yourself or using their normal means of online communication to confirm the message. And for heaven’s sake, if you get a security information request from PayPal sent to an e-mail address you know you’ve never used in conjunction with a PayPal payment, it’s a scam. End of story. PayPal will only use e-mail addresses you provided in your account configuration.
Hey scammers, whoever you are, give up with the phishing to my ATPM account. You’re wasting your time. I don’t use that address for anything that doesn’t pertain to the e-zine.
Phishers change bait as IM use grows
Scammers are increasingly using IM to launch phishing attacks, according to a report.
» Posted by ALBj at 08:45 PM (ET)
Category: Rant
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