Warning & examples Scam emails

Spam is another word for unsolicited junk email. Spam is sent by some individual or company to e-mail inboxes, advertising everything from pornography and phoney charity scams to dodgy get-rich-quick schemes and free websites.

1. Free offer scams
2. Nigerian scams
3. Mortgage scams
4. Health Insurance scams
5. Online Car or auto auctions scams
6. Scholarship scams
7. Employment job scams
8. Work from home scams
9. Travel Scams
10. Scholarship scams

The New Zealand Police has urged its citizens to apply the following formula to prevent being scammed. Whenever you are solicited by a request online to reveal any personal or financial details, imagine the same thing being asked of you by a stranger on the street. Would you reveal it to him?

Then there is no reason to treat the online request differently.

These days I have received scam emails to my free email account. I want to share it and warn people about it:

• From: sis_jennylee@yahoo.com.hk

After going through your information over the internet i decided to contact you for friendship and assistance for distribution of my inheritance towards charity. My name is Jenny Lee; I am a dying woman who has decided to donate what I have for the good work of charity. I am 60 years old and I was diagnosed for breast cancer for about 2 years now.

And begin with a “good” intentions and a sad story…mmm could you believe it?

If the email purports to be a legitimate charity or organization then always check the charity's contact details on the web (never rely on the email details) and contact them directly if you wish to make a donation. Even, bad people use Haiti earthquake like a hook to ask for financial "help" . It is sad how they take advantage of this kind of situation.

• From: "W U" phagan@eircom.net

Congrats.,confirm receipt $50,000 USD by sending your Name, Address ,Age, Sex,Phone Number, Etc

Be very CAREFUL with anybody or email promising you a lot of FREE MONEY. Besides, If someone require your information asap, is pressurizing and counting on you to make a hasty decision. Don’t do it, any decision take it with cool mind.

• From: rev.srazaq@hotmail.com

FONDAZIONEDi VITTORIO & ECOWAS http://www.fondazionedivittorio.it

Worldwide Donation Program "helping one to help others...." ah? Do u think is possible?

I have been directed to inform you that you have been chosen for a cash grant of 1,000,000.00usd (1million) by the board of trustees of the above stated non-governmental aid organisation.

Your grant number is B01-0147. Contact Rev.dr seun razaq via telephone +2348051809752 email rev.srazaq@hotmail.com, and provide these details: 1).Full name. 2).Address 3).Telephone number.

[Cell preferably] (4).Occupation. Regards. Adolfo Pepe

Nothing is for free…Everyone can create a website, is you want to confirm, do it through real authorities and don’t click on any link, go to independents resources to know about the company or offer.

Now these messages also come by phone, fax, or email.

• From: inmichalkoko@hotmail.com

My name is Mr.Michal Koko , what I have that may be of interest to you is a business proposal that will benefit you.I work with the Royal Bank of Scotland here in Madrid Spain. The main reason I am writing to you is based on a Corporate Bank account that has been lying dormant for some years now, it was owned by a late Canadian industrialist.Due to my investigations, I found out that she died on 22nd of September,2001 from injuries sustained from an auto crash in venezuela, with no child, next of kin or relative.

more movie story...to ask for personal information and bank account...

Once this is done, we will give a certain percentage of the funds to you and keep the rest for ourselves. I will inform you more on how to get the account transferred to you upon your response by email.I would want you to have it in mind that this project is 100% risk free.

Again a dramatic story to collaborate with them…well don’t reply and don’t fall in their game. You should think how is the real world, if something like that happens…what do you do in their position, trust in a stranger, whose email address you found in a social networking website?

There are lot of treats and frauds on internet. Using a corporate account, your business will be safe from scam or reduce the probability www.xgen.in. And using anti-spam technology, you can avoid be victim and be more productive in your work www.spamjadoo.com.

Free email account for business?

Hotmail, yahoo, gmail and more free email servers have huge popularity and are widely used, but are you sure are safe and corporate for your business?

• Free accounts are target by phishers, pharmers, hackers, crackers and other cyber crooks who attempt to steal sensitive information or plant e-mail worms, Trojan Horses and other malware.
• Free accounts are attack with undesired ads, which is one of the main reasons that these providers can offer their services for free.
• You might lose your account if you do not use it within a certain time, if you subscribe your email to any business or website; your information is gone.
• Not real customer service.
• Because users of Hotmail and Yahoo! Mail accounts share their Internet domains with millions of other users across the Web, they run the risk of having their e-mail addresses accidentally blacklisted by recipients that decide to block entire domains from their inboxes, rather than just specific e-mail addresses. Such blanket blacklistings thus may hurt users that aren´t guilty of spamming or any other netiquette breaches.
• Any message can be intercept and even modify before arrive to the final destination.

Your own domain gives you a unique email identity. Besides an encryption and secure exchange of message to do business transactions or share confidential information. Try an Enterprise email server online http://demo.xgen.in/ .

www.xgen.in

Protect your children online

"Online enticement of children for sexual acts has increased 714% since 1998." The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children

"Seventy-three percent of American teens aged 12 to 17 now use social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace, up from 55 percent two years ago" Federal Trade Commission

The latest statistics should alert us about the security problems online with a high vulnerability group, kids and teenagers. For parents the control becomes difficult in the cyberspace because the long time spend on internet, webcams, emails, social networking websites, online games and more tools.

Here are some simple tips to decrease the risk, which are suggested by US-CERT:

• Be involved – Use internet with your children. Consider activities you can work on together, whether play a game, research a topic you had been talking about and teach him good habits.
• Keep your computer in an open area – It gives you the opportunity to intervene if you notice a behavior that could have negative consequences.
• Set rules and warn about dangers - Post these rules by the computer as a reminder. The goal isn't to scare them, it's to make them more aware.
• Monitor computer activity - Be aware of what your child is doing on the computer, including which web sites they are visiting. If they are using email, instant messaging, or chat rooms, try to get a sense of who they are corresponding with and whether she actually knows them.
• Keep lines of communication open - Let your child know that they can approach you with any questions or concerns about behaviors or problems she may have encountered on the computer.
• Consider implementing parental controls - For example, Internet Explorer allows you to restrict or allow certain web sites to be viewed on your computer, and you can protect these settings with a password. To find those options, click Tools on your menu bar, select Internet Options..., choose the Content tab, and click the Enable... button under Content Advisor.
• Consider partitioning your computer into separate accounts - Most operating systems (including Windows XP, Mac OS X, and Linux) give you the option of creating a different user account for each user. If you're worried that your child may accidentally access, modify, and/or delete your files, you can give her a separate account and decrease the amount of access and number of privileges she has.

In addition to limiting functionality within your browser, avoid letting your browser remember passwords and other personal information.

Internet is a amazing resource for academic and entertainment purposes. But it also represents threats, specially for kids. Children still need advice, guidance, and protection; it doesn't matter that their advanced knowledge in computers over parents, be aware and inform them about the risk and good habits to use online.

Staying Safe on Social Networks Websites

The more information malicious people have about you, the easier it is for them to take advantage of you. Almost all our information is on internet, and with the new boom of social networks websites we are publishing information about our friends, location, hobbies, all about our daily life.

But when people reveal personal information, they don’t take the same cautions as they would when meeting someone in person, because:

• the internet provides a sense of anonymity
• the lack of physical interaction provides a false sense of security
• they tailor the information for their friends to read, forgetting that others may see it
• they want to offer insights to impress potential friends or associates

Predators may form relationships online and then convince unsuspecting individuals to meet them in person, case of a Girl with just 17 years old in US that was killed by a predator who said be a teenager. Also attackers can distribute malicious code or execute a social engineering attack to get personal or financial data.

What can you do to protect yourself?

Limit the amount of personal information you post Only post information you are comfortable with strangers seeing. When you post information, you can retract it, in spite that you delete it...may still exist in the servers. DO NOT publish personal data such as address or routine activities.

Be skeptical Be careful and don’t believe everything you read or people share, remember internet give the sense of safety and sometimes dangerous anonymous.

Keep a "private" email address which you share only with close friends and family. Never use this private email address on any site. Jmail by www.spamjadoo.com is recommended and provides you privacy.

Check privacy policies to restrict access to only certain people or others preferential settings. Consider limit the people who are allowed to contact you on these sites.

Use strong passwords Don’t use an obvious password or easily to guess, people can pretend be you.

Don't post your email address in "plain" form anywhere on the Web. Instead, you can disguise your email address by writing it in a convoluted way so that humans can still read it, but (spammers machine) bots can't. For example, instead of writing "john@example.com", use "john AT example DOT com"

Remember always that the internet is a public resource.

And you spent 5.73 years of your life deleting spam

People is spending more time online for business or personal entertainment. But how much time are you spending daily? According to Industry estimates, over $25 billion are lost per year in just the time spent by users to delete spam. At least 70% of all emails are spam, and the percentage shoots up at times to over 90%.

www.spamjadoo.com Business solutions

India Govt. asks Google, Skype, and RIM for access to email and other data or face a ban

According to the Economic Times, India’s government has asked the Department of Telecommunications (DOT) to send a notice to RIM, Skype, and Google requesting that each service open its email and other communication data to the Indian government.

These digital media are being misused by terrorists to bypass monitoring systems linked to mobile phone services. The companies must deliver in a format readable to the Indian security agency.

Now we should think about the consequences for the final users, privacy and security. From companies to persons will be disclose information. More transparency or privacy?, what is the scope of the governments over the companies and final users information?. Besides if RIM Blackberry, Skype and Google will adjust to the new procedures.

Let me know what you think.

How To Protect Sensitive Information Online

Do you know that your email message can be intercept, read and modify before reach its destination? Businesses face more security challenge to manage their confidentiality and make transactions. Sensitive information such as bank ID, new agreements or personal records getting into the wrong hands can have huge and costly effects on consumers and businesses.

As business person, you should know if your data is safe or in danger to be hacked …even at one click to be disclose all your confidential information. One solution are encrypted messages. Encryption enables you to send a message in a code into random series of characters with a secret private key to make it secure for transmission.

The only person, who can view the information or email, has the right private key…the info was converted with algorithms, and then everyone else will see just letters and numbers. It can be encrypt: hard drivers, attachments, digital signatures, folder security, laptops, removable media, file transfers, email, IM (Instant messaging).

One of the popular protocols for encryption is PGP, a cryptographic software package published in 1991 by Phil R. Zimmermann. The easiest way to use encryption is to purchase an email server/business application that incorporates some form of encryption technology. XGen Plus email server, for example, provides PGP - Pretty Good Privacy. A public-private key cryptography system used to easily integrate the use of encryption in users tasks, such as electronic mail protection and authentication, and protecting files stored on an email server.

How does encryption work? According to US-CERT National Cyber Alert System

1. Obtain the public key for the person you want to be able to read the information. If you get the key from a public key ring, contact the person directly to confirm that the series of letters and numbers associated with the key is the correct fingerprint.
2. Encrypt the email message using their public key. Most email clients have a feature to easily perform this task.
3. When the person receives the message, he or she will be able to decrypt it.

Every company has different needs, before purchasing any application; you should make sure that the offering suits your security requirements, verifying the company risk profile and take a decision.

Cybersecurity Report 2010

Resource: 2010 MAAWG Email Security-Awareness and Usage Report

Are you aware that there are malicious viruses that can control your computer without your knowledge and maybe use your computer to spread spam or steal your personal information just with one click email?

Half of email users in North America and in Western Europe have opened or accessed spam and large proportions, representing tens of millions, have taken action like clicking on links or opening attachments that could leave them susceptible to their computers being infected.

Furthermore, nearly half of those who have accessed spam (46%) have done so intentionally – to unsubscribe, out of curiosity, or out of interest in the products or services being offered.

In addition, many users do not typically flag or report spam or fraudulent email. Younger users both generally consider themselves more experienced in terms of email security but also are more likely to engage in risky behavior, such as opening or clicking on spam.

Preventing and identifying spam

If they were to become infected with a bot, email users are most likely to say they would rely on their anti-virus software to alert them (66%). Majorities also say that they would know that they have a bot if their computer wasn’t functioning normally or was running slowly (52%) or if they noticed a program that they hadn’t installed (52%).

More than four in ten say that they would know that they had a bot if their friends told them that they had been receiving spam from their email address (45%) or if unusual error messages appeared (43%).

Roughly a third would recognize that their computer had a bot if their credit card company or bank notified them of suspicious account activity (37%), if they noticed corrupted files (34%), or if a lot of pop-ups appeared (33%). One in twenty (5%) would look for other indicators. However, nearly one in five (19%) say that they are unsure as to how they would recognize a bot.

For business is a critical task prevent virtual attacks to keep safe their confidential information and message exchange. Companies should use an Enterprise email server www.xgen.in and anti-spam email privacy technology www.spamjadoo.com to protect against Denial of Service attacks to ensure stability of your messaging network and optimize message flow.

10 Effective Tips to Reduce spam

81% – The percentage of emails in 2009 were spam (McAfee), means 72.9 trillion. These emails going to your junk folder where they are never opened or your inbox to make you waste your time and exposed to non-desire spam, fraud, virus, advertisement and a possible hack.

So here there are some tips to reduce the spam:

1. Don’t give your email address in every site. Be careful to who you give it, even cards. Companies create database with your information and preferences, and it is fine…but there is the possibility that your e-mail address can be sold to a spammer and you will receive unwanted messages.

2. Don't click links in spam messages. If you receive a junk email with instructions to unsubscribe, and don’t want to receive anymore, do not follow the instructions for unsubscribing. Usually, with one click you are confirming your email address.

3. Be selective with your Internet Service Provider (ISP). Use an Internet Service Provider (ISP) that blocks unwanted Spam email. In Rajasthan or North India, Data Infosys Ltd.

4. Use software to block email suspected to be spam, If you have business, act like a business person and take serious your virtual communication.

5. Disable the automatic pictures in HTML messages. Spammers use it to track if you open the message when the graphic is downloaded. Set this option.

6. Read and use privacy setting on social networking sites. Normally social websites let you set who can access or see your email address, use your privacy rights.

7. Check the privacy policies or statement of Web sites. In internet there are useful info that you want to receive, but before subscribe to any newsletter verify how they plan use your email, If they do don’t specific how…better decline your request.

8. Don’t reply messages with personal information. If your bank or whatever company asks you, never reply. Most legitimate companies will not send that kind of an e-mail. Can be a spoofed e-mail message to make a virtual attack like fraud.

9. If you need connect to your clients or suppliers, use a contact format in your website. Use one public email address for general communication or better use an Anti-Spam application, that will give you more freedom to interact with your potential clients or any person related with your organization.

10. Don't spam other people. Don't forward every chain e-mail messages. Be good friend, because everyone can see the email address and use for other purposes. Or use BBC (Blind Carbon Copy) if you really want send the message to a lot of people.

Unless that you use a business tool to eliminate spam, there is not alternative to don’t see more spam in your email. But surely the previous tips will help you to deal with the spam and reduce it. I hope so it will be useful for you.

http://www.spamjadoo.com/ More corporate info to remove completely the spam.