Spam for Thanksgiving
By Bob McDonnell“You have received an e-card from a friend wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving! Click here to open it!”
The sender of the card isn’t specified, nor is the sender’s e-mail address. Yet you are tempted to open the festive e-mail.
Far from being a grateful friend sending you a greeting card, it may be the Zapchast Trojan virus, which infects computers with an Internet Relay chat client, connecting your computer to attackers who then remotely command your machine.
Or, if you’re asked to log-in to another Web site to view your card, it could be a “phishing” scheme where a bogus site gathers your personal information.
Hallmark and other legitimate purveyors of popular e-cards are warning folks to watch out for this latest scam brewing across America.
This scam is growing, especially as we enter the holiday season. Fortunately, the Attorney General’s Office has not received any reports of Virginians falling prey. And we want to keep it that way.
Here are some tips:
Never open e-mails from unknown senders.
Never open an e-mail you know to be spam. A code embedded in spam advertises that you opened the e-mail, confirming the validity of your address and thus generating more spam.
Never open unexpected attachments, even if it appears to be from someone you know. Confirm it first, either over the phone or through a different e-mail address, so you’re not simply replying to the e-mail that might have a virus.
Never click on embedded links in an unsolicited e-mail.
If you fear you have already encountered a fraudulent e-card, file a complaint at www.ic3.gov/complaint. The best medicine is prevention. Make sure your anti-virus software subscription is current with daily updates. (To learn more about firewall security, get a free safety scan and download anti-spyware technology, Windows users can visit www.microsoft.com/protect/computer/default.mspx and Mac users can visit www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/networking_security.)
Consumer protection is an important statutory duty of the Office of the Attorney General, and our staff can help. In an age of increased consumer scams, we all must continue to be educated and vigilant.