Phishing Warning

[joreth]

I was just sent this email.  It appears to be an ebay customer sending me an email asking a question about an auction.  Problem is, I don't have anything up for auction right now.  It looks all official, just like a real Ebay form, and it has links to a page that looks just like an Ebay sign-in page.  THIS PAGE IS FAKE!!!  This is a very clever attempt to obtain my username and password for my ebay account.  And since most people use the same usernames and passwords for everything, this guy could potentially have enough information to steal my identity and take over any online account. 

 

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not fall for this kind of scam.  If you ever receive an email that you don't know anything about, that appears to send you to a legitimate website where you have an account, DO NOT sign in.  Check the address bar at the top of your browser for the url.  It should say http://www.realwebsitename.com (where "realwesbsitename" is the name of the company you're supposed to be visiting) with no other numbers or words in the url.  If you ever receive an email like this and you're not sure if it's a scam or not, do not follow the link in the email.  Instead, open a new browser window, type in the url for the homepage of that company yourself (in this case, I would type in http://www.ebay.com), then check your inbox or whatever mail services that company offers to see if the original email appears in the legitimate inbox.  I recommend finding the Contact Us or Help sections and sending the email to their tech support services asking them to verify the validity of the correspondence.  Then they can check it out for you, and if it's a Phishing Scam, you have just reported them.

 

Forward this on to everyone you know, but PLEASE remove all headers and PLEASE put everyone in the BCC field (that's Blind Carbon Copy).  If you have to put *something* in the To: field, feel free to use emailforwards@yahoo.com for that purpose.

----- Original Message -----

From: "ebay.member"
To: undisclosed-recipients, :
Subject: Question for item #250026510836 - Respond Now<
Date: Thu, 17 May 2007 07:50:50 +1000

a

eBay sent this message. Your registered name is included to show this message originated from eBay. Learn more. Question about Item - Respond Now eBay sent this message on behalf of an eBay member through My Messages. Responses sent using email will go to the eBay member directly and will include your email address.  Question from bluebellvue bluebellvue( 146) Positive feedback: 100% Member since: May-25-05 Location: NC, United States Registered on: www.ebay.com Item: (250026510836) This message was sent while the listing was active. bluebellvue is a potential buyer. I don't understand why you are not answering back.I have made the payment and you said you will provide a tracking number after the payment is done.If you don't replay I am assuring you I will report you at eBay.I am sorry for that but you gave me no choice.Waiting for your answer asap. Thank you! Mark Barett. Respond to this question Responses in My Messages will not include your email address.   Thank you, eBay Details for item number: 250026510638 Item URL: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200023943812&sspagename=ADME:B:AAQ:US:1 End date: Sep-11-06 16:36:44 PDT Marketplace Safety Tip Always remember to complete your transactions on eBay - it's the safer way to trade. Is this message an offer to buy your item directly through email without winning the item on eBay? If so, please help make the eBay marketplace safer by reporting it to us. These "outside of eBay" transactions may be unsafe and are against eBay policy. Learn more about trading safely. Is this email inappropriate? Does it violate eBay policy? Help protect the Community by reporting it. Learn how you can protect yourself from spoof (fake) emails at: http://pages.ebay.com/education/spooftutorial This eBay notice was sent to you on behalf of another eBay member through the eBay platform and in accordance with our Privacy Policy. If you would like to receive this email in text format, change your notification preferences. See our Privacy Policy and User Agreement if you have questions about eBay's communication policies. Privacy Policy: http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/privacy-policy.html User Agreement: http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/user-agreement.html Copyright © 2006 eBay, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Designated trademarks and brands are the property of their respective owners. eBay and the eBay logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of eBay, Inc. eBay is located at 2145 Hamilton Avenue, San Jose, CA 95125.