Another travel-related caution
Aug 28th 2006 | 6:56 am
#1
Guest
Posts: n/a
Another travel-related caution
On April 7, 2006, I posted a message on rec.travel.europe about the
problem I was having in Paris with my Washington Mutual card.
Forty-nine responses to my posting followed.
Several days ago -- nearly five months later -- I received an email
from "Washington Mutual" telling me my account had been frozen. To
unfreeze it, I only needed to click on the link in the message and give
vital account information. The message contained a number of misspelled
words: customer was spelled costomer, and account was spelled acount.
Obviously, this was an attempt at phishing. Someone other than
Washington Mutual was attempting to get my account information to use
at my expense. I reported the message to both Yahoo and the Federal
Trade Commission, then deleted it.
My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
issue.
Bon voyage, bonne arrivée!
wck
problem I was having in Paris with my Washington Mutual card.
Forty-nine responses to my posting followed.
Several days ago -- nearly five months later -- I received an email
from "Washington Mutual" telling me my account had been frozen. To
unfreeze it, I only needed to click on the link in the message and give
vital account information. The message contained a number of misspelled
words: customer was spelled costomer, and account was spelled acount.
Obviously, this was an attempt at phishing. Someone other than
Washington Mutual was attempting to get my account information to use
at my expense. I reported the message to both Yahoo and the Federal
Trade Commission, then deleted it.
My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
issue.
Bon voyage, bonne arrivée!
wck
Aug 28th 2006 | 7:10 am
#2
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
[email protected] wrote:
> On April 7, 2006, I posted a message on rec.travel.europe about the
> problem I was having in Paris with my Washington Mutual card.
> Forty-nine responses to my posting followed.
> Several days ago -- nearly five months later -- I received an email
> from "Washington Mutual" telling me my account had been frozen. To
> unfreeze it, I only needed to click on the link in the message and give
> vital account information. The message contained a number of misspelled
> words: customer was spelled costomer, and account was spelled acount.
> Obviously, this was an attempt at phishing. Someone other than
> Washington Mutual was attempting to get my account information to use
> at my expense. I reported the message to both Yahoo and the Federal
> Trade Commission, then deleted it.
> My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> issue.
I get that without posting to usenet. Quite often it's from banks I
don't even have an account with. The phishers don't target specific
persons. They just send these out en mass hoping to catch 10% or so.
It probably has nothing to do with your post on usenet.
> Bon voyage, bonne arrivée!
> wck
> On April 7, 2006, I posted a message on rec.travel.europe about the
> problem I was having in Paris with my Washington Mutual card.
> Forty-nine responses to my posting followed.
> Several days ago -- nearly five months later -- I received an email
> from "Washington Mutual" telling me my account had been frozen. To
> unfreeze it, I only needed to click on the link in the message and give
> vital account information. The message contained a number of misspelled
> words: customer was spelled costomer, and account was spelled acount.
> Obviously, this was an attempt at phishing. Someone other than
> Washington Mutual was attempting to get my account information to use
> at my expense. I reported the message to both Yahoo and the Federal
> Trade Commission, then deleted it.
> My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> issue.
I get that without posting to usenet. Quite often it's from banks I
don't even have an account with. The phishers don't target specific
persons. They just send these out en mass hoping to catch 10% or so.
It probably has nothing to do with your post on usenet.
> Bon voyage, bonne arrivée!
> wck
Aug 28th 2006 | 8:03 am
#3
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
"PeterL" <[email protected]> wrote:
>I get that without posting to usenet. Quite often it's from banks I
>don't even have an account with. The phishers don't target specific
>persons. They just send these out en mass hoping to catch 10% or so.
>It probably has nothing to do with your post on usenet.
Agreed. I get communications purporting to be from a wide variety of
banks. Given the cost of mass electronic communication, I think a hit
rate of 0.001% would be sufficient to make it worth the fraudsters'
while.
--
PB
The return address has been MUNGED
My travel writing: http://www.iol.ie/~draoi/
>I get that without posting to usenet. Quite often it's from banks I
>don't even have an account with. The phishers don't target specific
>persons. They just send these out en mass hoping to catch 10% or so.
>It probably has nothing to do with your post on usenet.
Agreed. I get communications purporting to be from a wide variety of
banks. Given the cost of mass electronic communication, I think a hit
rate of 0.001% would be sufficient to make it worth the fraudsters'
while.
--
PB
The return address has been MUNGED
My travel writing: http://www.iol.ie/~draoi/
Aug 28th 2006 | 9:46 am
#4
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
On 28 Aug 2006 11:56:51 -0700, [email protected] wrote:
>My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
>use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
>issue.
Just don't use a serious email address on usenet. Spam will find its
way in for sure.
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--
>My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
>use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
>issue.
Just don't use a serious email address on usenet. Spam will find its
way in for sure.
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--
Aug 28th 2006 | 10:13 am
#5
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
Yes it has, they pick people from the NG
"PeterL" <[email protected]> a écrit dans le message de news:
[email protected] om...
[email protected] wrote:
> On April 7, 2006, I posted a message on rec.travel.europe about the
> problem I was having in Paris with my Washington Mutual card.
> Forty-nine responses to my posting followed.
> Several days ago -- nearly five months later -- I received an email
> from "Washington Mutual" telling me my account had been frozen. To
> unfreeze it, I only needed to click on the link in the message and give
> vital account information. The message contained a number of misspelled
> words: customer was spelled costomer, and account was spelled acount.
> Obviously, this was an attempt at phishing. Someone other than
> Washington Mutual was attempting to get my account information to use
> at my expense. I reported the message to both Yahoo and the Federal
> Trade Commission, then deleted it.
> My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> issue.
I get that without posting to usenet. Quite often it's from banks I
don't even have an account with. The phishers don't target specific
persons. They just send these out en mass hoping to catch 10% or so.
It probably has nothing to do with your post on usenet.
> Bon voyage, bonne arrivée!
> wck
"PeterL" <[email protected]> a écrit dans le message de news:
[email protected] om...
[email protected] wrote:
> On April 7, 2006, I posted a message on rec.travel.europe about the
> problem I was having in Paris with my Washington Mutual card.
> Forty-nine responses to my posting followed.
> Several days ago -- nearly five months later -- I received an email
> from "Washington Mutual" telling me my account had been frozen. To
> unfreeze it, I only needed to click on the link in the message and give
> vital account information. The message contained a number of misspelled
> words: customer was spelled costomer, and account was spelled acount.
> Obviously, this was an attempt at phishing. Someone other than
> Washington Mutual was attempting to get my account information to use
> at my expense. I reported the message to both Yahoo and the Federal
> Trade Commission, then deleted it.
> My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> issue.
I get that without posting to usenet. Quite often it's from banks I
don't even have an account with. The phishers don't target specific
persons. They just send these out en mass hoping to catch 10% or so.
It probably has nothing to do with your post on usenet.
> Bon voyage, bonne arrivée!
> wck
Aug 28th 2006 | 10:14 am
#6
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
It's not spam, its phishing and one of the sources is a relation between
posters and key words
we get enough spamming directly in this NG
"Dave Frightens Me" <deepfreudmoors@eITmISaACTUALLYiREAL!l.nu> a écrit dans
le message de news: [email protected]...
> On 28 Aug 2006 11:56:51 -0700, [email protected] wrote:
>>My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
>>use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
>>issue.
> Just don't use a serious email address on usenet. Spam will find its
> way in for sure.
> --
> ---
> DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
> ---
> --
posters and key words
we get enough spamming directly in this NG
"Dave Frightens Me" <deepfreudmoors@eITmISaACTUALLYiREAL!l.nu> a écrit dans
le message de news: [email protected]...
> On 28 Aug 2006 11:56:51 -0700, [email protected] wrote:
>>My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
>>use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
>>issue.
> Just don't use a serious email address on usenet. Spam will find its
> way in for sure.
> --
> ---
> DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
> ---
> --
Aug 28th 2006 | 10:22 am
#7
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
[email protected] wrote:
>especially if you should post a message
>about a money issue.
As others have mentioned they are just fishing and it has nothing to do
with a Usenet post other than just probably harvesting your email
address along with millions of others.
It took them awhile but they finally hit on my US bank after many
others.
My bank is Citizens Bank and it's only in 13 states. Plus they don't
have my email address or have I ever mentioned my bank in any post.
But a few days after I got it I mentioned to a bank teller (as a joke),
that I had received their email and sent all the account info they
requested and wanted to know if my account was straightened out yet.
Her jaw dropped and she said "Sir that email wasn't from us, it's an
internet scam".
Put on my 'fear and panic' face and said "only kidding" :).
Try it, it's good for a laugh :).
But Thanks for the heads-up anyway.
Regards, Walter
..And Paradise Was Lost...like teardrops in the rain...
>especially if you should post a message
>about a money issue.
As others have mentioned they are just fishing and it has nothing to do
with a Usenet post other than just probably harvesting your email
address along with millions of others.
It took them awhile but they finally hit on my US bank after many
others.
My bank is Citizens Bank and it's only in 13 states. Plus they don't
have my email address or have I ever mentioned my bank in any post.
But a few days after I got it I mentioned to a bank teller (as a joke),
that I had received their email and sent all the account info they
requested and wanted to know if my account was straightened out yet.
Her jaw dropped and she said "Sir that email wasn't from us, it's an
internet scam".
Put on my 'fear and panic' face and said "only kidding" :).
Try it, it's good for a laugh :).
But Thanks for the heads-up anyway.
Regards, Walter
..And Paradise Was Lost...like teardrops in the rain...
Aug 28th 2006 | 10:56 am
#8
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
Runge wrote:
> It's not spam, its phishing and one of the sources is a relation between
> posters and key words
Then how come I get phishing posts from banks I don't even have an
account with?
> we get enough spamming directly in this NG
> "Dave Frightens Me" <deepfreudmoors@eITmISaACTUALLYiREAL!l.nu> a écrit dans
> le message de news: [email protected]...
> > On 28 Aug 2006 11:56:51 -0700, [email protected] wrote:
> >
> >>My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> >>use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> >>issue.
> >
> > Just don't use a serious email address on usenet. Spam will find its
> > way in for sure.
> > --
> > ---
> > DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
> > ---
> > --
> It's not spam, its phishing and one of the sources is a relation between
> posters and key words
Then how come I get phishing posts from banks I don't even have an
account with?
> we get enough spamming directly in this NG
> "Dave Frightens Me" <deepfreudmoors@eITmISaACTUALLYiREAL!l.nu> a écrit dans
> le message de news: [email protected]...
> > On 28 Aug 2006 11:56:51 -0700, [email protected] wrote:
> >
> >>My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> >>use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> >>issue.
> >
> > Just don't use a serious email address on usenet. Spam will find its
> > way in for sure.
> > --
> > ---
> > DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
> > ---
> > --
Aug 28th 2006 | 2:25 pm
#9
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
gRunge wrote:
> Yes it has, they pick people from the NG
Not necessarily...
--
Best
Greg
> "PeterL" <[email protected]> a écrit dans le message de news:
> [email protected] om...
> [email protected] wrote:
> > On April 7, 2006, I posted a message on rec.travel.europe about the
> > problem I was having in Paris with my Washington Mutual card.
> > Forty-nine responses to my posting followed.
> >
> > Several days ago -- nearly five months later -- I received an email
> > from "Washington Mutual" telling me my account had been frozen. To
> > unfreeze it, I only needed to click on the link in the message and give
> > vital account information. The message contained a number of misspelled
> > words: customer was spelled costomer, and account was spelled acount.
> >
> > Obviously, this was an attempt at phishing. Someone other than
> > Washington Mutual was attempting to get my account information to use
> > at my expense. I reported the message to both Yahoo and the Federal
> > Trade Commission, then deleted it.
> >
> > My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> > use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> > issue.
> >
> I get that without posting to usenet. Quite often it's from banks I
> don't even have an account with. The phishers don't target specific
> persons. They just send these out en mass hoping to catch 10% or so.
> It probably has nothing to do with your post on usenet.
> > Bon voyage, bonne arrivée!
> > wck
> Yes it has, they pick people from the NG
Not necessarily...
--
Best
Greg
> "PeterL" <[email protected]> a écrit dans le message de news:
> [email protected] om...
> [email protected] wrote:
> > On April 7, 2006, I posted a message on rec.travel.europe about the
> > problem I was having in Paris with my Washington Mutual card.
> > Forty-nine responses to my posting followed.
> >
> > Several days ago -- nearly five months later -- I received an email
> > from "Washington Mutual" telling me my account had been frozen. To
> > unfreeze it, I only needed to click on the link in the message and give
> > vital account information. The message contained a number of misspelled
> > words: customer was spelled costomer, and account was spelled acount.
> >
> > Obviously, this was an attempt at phishing. Someone other than
> > Washington Mutual was attempting to get my account information to use
> > at my expense. I reported the message to both Yahoo and the Federal
> > Trade Commission, then deleted it.
> >
> > My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> > use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> > issue.
> >
> I get that without posting to usenet. Quite often it's from banks I
> don't even have an account with. The phishers don't target specific
> persons. They just send these out en mass hoping to catch 10% or so.
> It probably has nothing to do with your post on usenet.
> > Bon voyage, bonne arrivée!
> > wck
Aug 28th 2006 | 2:28 pm
#10
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
gRunge wrote:
> It's not spam, its phishing and one of the sources is a relation between
> posters and key words
> we get enough spamming directly in this NG
Hey gRunge, Jacqueline wrote me and she told me that she wants you to pay
her "salary" for this past Saturday night...
She needs $$$ for some new knickers and some frites...
--
Best
Greg
> "Dave Frightens Me" <deepfreudmoors@eITmISaACTUALLYiREAL!l.nu> a écrit
dans
> le message de news: [email protected]...
> > On 28 Aug 2006 11:56:51 -0700, [email protected] wrote:
> >
> >>My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> >>use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> >>issue.
> >
> > Just don't use a serious email address on usenet. Spam will find its
> > way in for sure.
> > --
> > ---
> > DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
> > ---
> > --
> It's not spam, its phishing and one of the sources is a relation between
> posters and key words
> we get enough spamming directly in this NG
Hey gRunge, Jacqueline wrote me and she told me that she wants you to pay
her "salary" for this past Saturday night...
She needs $$$ for some new knickers and some frites...
--
Best
Greg
> "Dave Frightens Me" <deepfreudmoors@eITmISaACTUALLYiREAL!l.nu> a écrit
dans
> le message de news: [email protected]...
> > On 28 Aug 2006 11:56:51 -0700, [email protected] wrote:
> >
> >>My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> >>use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> >>issue.
> >
> > Just don't use a serious email address on usenet. Spam will find its
> > way in for sure.
> > --
> > ---
> > DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
> > ---
> > --
Aug 28th 2006 | 5:33 pm
#11
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
All sorts of sources with the phishing issue, see how strange it is that you
post something about a topic and find spam/phishing around the same thing !
Even better, sometimes your surfing brings out messages about the same
topic, means perhaps your comp has those cookies inside it...
Better clean up registry, cache etc
Even better once a year format C: and have a ready image of your partition
in order not to manually reinstall everything.
Use a different email for your NG posts and do not go to the same fishy
sites morrow usually visits...
...and as you wisely did do not answer all those sollicitations, even those
who may seem legit.
"PeterL" <[email protected]> a écrit dans le message de news:
[email protected]. com...
Runge wrote:
> It's not spam, its phishing and one of the sources is a relation between
> posters and key words
Then how come I get phishing posts from banks I don't even have an
account with?
> we get enough spamming directly in this NG
> "Dave Frightens Me" <deepfreudmoors@eITmISaACTUALLYiREAL!l.nu> a écrit
> dans
> le message de news: [email protected]...
> > On 28 Aug 2006 11:56:51 -0700, [email protected] wrote:
> >
> >>My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> >>use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> >>issue.
> >
> > Just don't use a serious email address on usenet. Spam will find its
> > way in for sure.
> > --
> > ---
> > DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
> > ---
> > --
post something about a topic and find spam/phishing around the same thing !
Even better, sometimes your surfing brings out messages about the same
topic, means perhaps your comp has those cookies inside it...
Better clean up registry, cache etc
Even better once a year format C: and have a ready image of your partition
in order not to manually reinstall everything.
Use a different email for your NG posts and do not go to the same fishy
sites morrow usually visits...
...and as you wisely did do not answer all those sollicitations, even those
who may seem legit.
"PeterL" <[email protected]> a écrit dans le message de news:
[email protected]. com...
Runge wrote:
> It's not spam, its phishing and one of the sources is a relation between
> posters and key words
Then how come I get phishing posts from banks I don't even have an
account with?
> we get enough spamming directly in this NG
> "Dave Frightens Me" <deepfreudmoors@eITmISaACTUALLYiREAL!l.nu> a écrit
> dans
> le message de news: [email protected]...
> > On 28 Aug 2006 11:56:51 -0700, [email protected] wrote:
> >
> >>My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> >>use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> >>issue.
> >
> > Just don't use a serious email address on usenet. Spam will find its
> > way in for sure.
> > --
> > ---
> > DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
> > ---
> > --
Aug 28th 2006 | 7:23 pm
#12
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
[email protected] wrote:
> On April 7, 2006, I posted a message on rec.travel.europe about the
> problem I was having in Paris with my Washington Mutual card.
> Forty-nine responses to my posting followed.
>
> Several days ago -- nearly five months later -- I received an email
> from "Washington Mutual" telling me my account had been frozen. To
> unfreeze it, I only needed to click on the link in the message and give
> vital account information. The message contained a number of misspelled
> words: customer was spelled costomer, and account was spelled acount.
>
> Obviously, this was an attempt at phishing. Someone other than
> Washington Mutual was attempting to get my account information to use
> at my expense. I reported the message to both Yahoo and the Federal
> Trade Commission, then deleted it.
>
> My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> issue.
Fortunately, Earthlink's spam-catcher software throws
everyone not in my address book into "Suspect E-mail" which
provides a heads-up for me, even if I might otherwise regard
the post as genuine. What amuses me about the e-mails
purportedly from banks is that I get so many from banks I've
never enve heard of, banks in foreign countries, other
states..... (The sources are almost as varied as the
inextinguishable "Nigerian" letter con-game.)
>
> Bon voyage, bonne arrivée!
> wck
>
> On April 7, 2006, I posted a message on rec.travel.europe about the
> problem I was having in Paris with my Washington Mutual card.
> Forty-nine responses to my posting followed.
>
> Several days ago -- nearly five months later -- I received an email
> from "Washington Mutual" telling me my account had been frozen. To
> unfreeze it, I only needed to click on the link in the message and give
> vital account information. The message contained a number of misspelled
> words: customer was spelled costomer, and account was spelled acount.
>
> Obviously, this was an attempt at phishing. Someone other than
> Washington Mutual was attempting to get my account information to use
> at my expense. I reported the message to both Yahoo and the Federal
> Trade Commission, then deleted it.
>
> My message here is simply to advise newsgroup users to be cautious and
> use common sense, especially if you should post a message about a money
> issue.
Fortunately, Earthlink's spam-catcher software throws
everyone not in my address book into "Suspect E-mail" which
provides a heads-up for me, even if I might otherwise regard
the post as genuine. What amuses me about the e-mails
purportedly from banks is that I get so many from banks I've
never enve heard of, banks in foreign countries, other
states..... (The sources are almost as varied as the
inextinguishable "Nigerian" letter con-game.)
>
> Bon voyage, bonne arrivée!
> wck
>
Aug 28th 2006 | 7:26 pm
#13
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
PeterL wrote:
> Runge wrote:
>
>>It's not spam, its phishing and one of the sources is a relation between
>>posters and key words
>
>
> Then how come I get phishing posts from banks I don't even have an
> account with?
And even banks in countries I've never so much as visited?
> Runge wrote:
>
>>It's not spam, its phishing and one of the sources is a relation between
>>posters and key words
>
>
> Then how come I get phishing posts from banks I don't even have an
> account with?
And even banks in countries I've never so much as visited?
Aug 28th 2006 | 7:39 pm
#14
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
"Poetic Justice" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> But a few days after I got it I mentioned to a bank teller (as a joke),
> that I had received their email
Is it the norm in the US that people still visit their banks? Mine is
internet/phone only, but I haven't been to their parent bank (HSBC) for
about five years!
Ian
news:[email protected]...
> But a few days after I got it I mentioned to a bank teller (as a joke),
> that I had received their email
Is it the norm in the US that people still visit their banks? Mine is
internet/phone only, but I haven't been to their parent bank (HSBC) for
about five years!
Ian
Aug 28th 2006 | 7:53 pm
#15
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Another travel-related caution
"EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> And even banks in countries I've never so much as visited?
And banks in countries where I didn't even know there were countries!
Ian
news:[email protected]...
> And even banks in countries I've never so much as visited?
And banks in countries where I didn't even know there were countries!
Ian
