Frequently Asked Questions - Spam

Here is another example of a spam or phish or even virus email. 

Please note that this seems legitimate because it LOOKS like it's coming from the IRS. They even use "irs.gov" in the email. Plus they aren't asking for "money", they are "offering money". The dollar amount is bold and looks like it was added with a database. This one is really tricky.

Here's how to determine it's a fake. #1 - The IRS is not going to do this. Sorry - but if you have a refund coming, it will not be as easy as clicking a link. So that's the first give-away.

Second - mouseover the link that is provided at the bottom. DO NOT CLICK IT .... JUST MOUSEOVER and wait for a few seconds.The actual URL should pop up and if you look at it, you can see that it has NOTHING to do with "irs.gov" (see the image below).

Note that their goal is to get you to click that link. It may take you to a page where they ask for more information, or it may be a "non-working" page, or a static page that appears to be nothing. But by actually clicking that link - you have opened the door to your system where who knows what has been implanted into your system. Please beware.

And do not fear. If the IRS truly has money for you - you will receive information through the mail - not email - at least not in this manner. 

This one is rather tricky because the words used are personal and yet general enough, that if I had known a "Tina", I might have thought it was an e-card, or a link to a website with an uplifting story, or ministry, etc.

Watch out for emails that are like this. Remember - if you have any question at all, do NOT click that link. If it really is a friend emailing you, they will understand your deleting it. Better safe than sorry.

Periodically, we remind you to be aware of fake emails, which often carry viruses or spamming capabilities, all of which can be detrimental to your system. Today we received another such email and decided this would be a good time to show you yet another example of how tricky these emails can be.

Note that it appears to be legit because it is coming from “System Administrator”. And the Subject appears to be harmless enough stating that you had an Undeliverable Message.

Since our settings are set to “AutoPreview” (which is different than “Preview Pane”) – we can see that the message is To: harpula@homesite.com with a Subject: of Not Read: Amazing, Jonah.

This is our most readily available clue that this is a hoax since we do not know that email address nor would we have had that subject. 

However, having said that – there are times when the To: and the Subject: may be generic enough to fool you. That’s why it’s always better to error on the side of caution. If you’re just not sure – delete it anyway. It’s better to have the sender re-send their information if it was legit, than to take the risk of infecting your system, your network, all your network’s users, and potentially every single email address in your Outlook. 

The thing to take particular notice of in this email is the attachment – marked by the little paperclip. It is always best to simply delete these emails without even opening it. However, if you should mistakenly open one – and then notice that it doesn’t appear to be from anyone you know or has strange or excess letters located in the email – please ABOVE ALL ELSE – never, Never, NEVER open an attachment from anyone that you do not know, or has strange writing.