Beware of PayPal scam going around

[Quixote1818]

Just got an email that said:

Your PayPal account could get suspended

Well, I don't even have PayPal and looked this up and evidently it's a scam that is going around to get you to give up information they can screw you over with. If you get an email like this be sure to delete it.

[DS1]

1. I get 50 of those a day

Obviously they work.

[benddem]

12. me too

and 55 from ebay, chase and other scammers. you can report these at [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail] they send you nice notes telling you all about scammers, but don't appear to do anything about them. Today I received a really nasty one from an ebay scammer, calling me the "n" word. It is disgusting.

[rkc3]

14. Apparently, we're on the same list.

I've got PayPal and Chase in the email database and use them frequently.

Just keep reminding every one you know to use their heads.

[AspenRose]

21. The latest one is from someone supposedly from a

federal credit union (NCUA).

"If you feel that you have received a fraudulent phishing e-mail purportedly from NCUA please forward the entire e-mail message to [e-mail].

Additionally, you can file formal complaints concerning any suspected fraudulent e-mail with the Internet Fraud Complaint Center (IFCC) at [e-mail]. The IFCC is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the National White Collar Crime Center. "

http://www.ncua.gov/Phishing/phishing.htm

You better believe I sent that email to IFCC.....

[EFerrari]

26. I got one from "Bank of America". n/t

[MADem]

2. I NEVER get crap like that in my IN box

It all goes to el crappo box, and is deleted.

[sendero]

3. It's called phishing.

... and it is done en masse for PayPal, eBay, various banks, savings and loans and etc.

I'm sure it's very profitable, I get these things almost every day.

The way it works is simple. The link provided does not really go to paypal, ebay, etc at all, it goes to a page that looks good usually on a foreign host somewhere. If you are fooled and enter your ID and password, these folks now have it.

[Hardrada]

7. Change your password if you suspect anything phishy.

I do every so often.

[RebelOne]

4. This scam has been circulating for a long, long time.

And there are plenty of people who fall for it.

[ClintonTyree]

11. Amazing, isn't it?

That people are dumb enough to do something just because someone else tells them to? I guess that's how bush got close enough so the Supreme Whores could give him the election. AND........they were stupid enough to do it a second time! Never "misunderestimate" the stupidity of the American public.

[Zookeeper]

16. Sometimes people are fooled when they are...

new to e-mailing, or if they are tired or distracted and see that kind of spam for the first time.

I admit to being fooled by a very authentic looking pop-up a couple of years ago. It was some kind of phony security warning and the second I clicked it, I thought, "UHHHH OHHHH." That mistake brought me a lot more pop-ups and self-replicating spyware.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

5. Forward these to

[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]

as need be.

[politicasista]

6. Thanks for the heads up

I got one of those last month and forwarded it to [e-mail]

[acmavm]

8. I get questions about my non-existant Paypal account all the

time.

[magellan]

9. eBay and banks are targets too

General rule of thumb: if the email asks you to click a link in order to sign in and update or verify your account information, it's a scam. Delete without hesitation.

[flamin lib]

10. Pay Pal and Ebay both have the user name in the greeting.

The phishing emails open with "Dear Ebay customer" or "Dear PayPal user". Real messages from those sites have the account holder's name in the greeting. They also ask you to go to the site without a link.

[meti57b]

17. I got a phising email last week (PayPal) and it had my real name .....

in the greeting.

The big tip-offs were that it was a "confirmation" that I paid someone mega-bucks for something, in the same screen format as the regular PayPal screen that you get, before you click the final "send". That just isn't something PayPal ever sends you. Also, the font was not one that PayPal uses. And it did have a "click here if you didn't authorize this payment".

I was, though, unnerved enough that I changed my passwords and reduced the funds in that particular bank account to a bare minimum.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

13. I get them and ones about eBay all the time. Forward it to

[e-mail]

They investigate them.

For eBay
[e-mail]

After I forward it, I report it as spam.

[schmuls]

15. I have a Paypal account, but I still suspected it was a scam and

deleted it!

[ThomWV]

18. I Like The Fake "Congratulations On Buying ..."

Or something like that.

The scam on this one, and I've got a bunch of these, is an Email that appears to be from Pay Pal thanking you for your use of their service for a purchase from E-Bay. Its usually frilly women's underware - really. There will be a link in the E-mail to an actual E-Bay item but if you look you'll notice that the auction ended weeks ago. So you know good and well you didn't buy the thing. At the bottom there is a link to hit if you dispute this payment. That's the key.

Hit that button and it will take you somewhere that looks an awful lot like the Pay Pal home page. All you have to do is log in. Type in your username for PayPal along with your password. Nothing to it.

Needless to say if you log in your future is going to change.

[proud2BlibKansan]

19. I have been getting that one for a couple years now

But I don't have a PayPal account.

[diamondsndust]

20. The best way to tell is this: point your mouse at the link...

and watch the bottom left of your screen. If it doesnt start with https:, it's bogus. Paypal uses a 128 bit secure socket connection in conjuction with a security certificate. Thats the meaning of the "s" at the end. "s" = secure....

Also, as has been stated in other answers here, Paypal will never ask you in an email to provide your password. Another simple solution is to sign in to your paypal or ebay account and see if you have messages. Ebay will have something in your "messages" inbox if it is from them. I believe paypal will also.

If anyone here has a website that they sell things from, especially digital goods such as ebooks or software, and uses paypal buttons for payment, you would be well advised to encrypt your buttons to stop digital theft. However, it can be a pain to log into paypal every time you want to make a new button. I have an alternative to that, which can be found here --> http://www.kingofresale.com/paylockpro.html ...... also, if this link goes against any policy here, let me know and I will remove the link, but keep the other pertinent points to this response.

[Catchawave]

22. Just keep forwarding them to [e-mail]

Also [e-mail] for those annoying letters from sellers! Ha!

They'll eventually stop. I haven't used either account for over 3 years, so I knew it was spammy.

[eppur_se_muova]

23. Got one today ... addressed to four different people.

That made it REALLY convincing.

Oh, and I don't have a PayPal account. That was a big clue.

[Raine]

24. I have Paypal but I get them on

e-mail accounts that I don't have Paypal on so I know they have got to be a scam. x(

[mod mom]

25. Too bad the NSA isn't looking into these attempt at idently theft instead

of peace activists.