Scam - HMRC Tax Refund Phishing Email

A friend of mine recently received the phishing email below. The hypelinks at the bottom all go back to the main www.hmrc.gov.uk website, however the link that says 'Click Here' actually goes to http://al-dammas.com/tmp/awstats/hmrc/hmrc/refundportal.htm this website has now been suspended but be cautious if you receive an email advising you that you are due a refund!

Further examples of HMRC phishing emails can be found here

2012 Tickets Ballot Opens - Fraud Warning

The 2012 ticket ballot opens today, 15th March 2011. The below information relates to the fraud prevention advice that has been agreed for anyone thinking of purchasing Olympic tickets.

The advice is very simple, do not use unauthorised websites. It is very important to get this message out to everyone wishing to purchase tickets. As a lot of our blog visitors are from overseas we thought we’d post this information as it is widely agreed in fraud prevention circles that by attempting to take away the market place from the scammers it reduces to opportunity for exploitation and fraud.

The Metropolitan Police's Operation Podium urges you to follow this advice to protect you, your personal details, family and friends from being exploited by criminals.

If you’re buying a ticket for the Games:

• The 2012 ticket ballot opens today (15th March 2011). You have until 26 April to apply for tickets through LOCOG as it is not first come first served
• Only apply for a ticket online at www.tickets.london2012.com. This is London 2012’s official site. You can get a paper application from any Lloyds TSB branch, or from any public library in Northern Ireland
• If you get a ticket for an event you can’t attend, you can return your ticket to get a refund through the London 2012 official ticket exchange. Your ticket will then be officially resold
• Don’t buy a ticket from an unauthorised website or tout. You risk being scammed, and not getting the ticket you wanted and paid for
• There are only three official providers for Games Breaks and Hospitality Packages in the UK - these are:

• Thomas Cook - http://www.thomascooklondon2012.com
• Prestige Travel - http://www.prestigeticketing.london2012.com/
• Jet Set Travel - http://www.jetsetsports.com/
• Other websites or companies will not be authorised to sell you a ticket
  as part of a package.

Always check the terms and conditions to see exactly what you are being sold; If you find tickets for sale before the 15th March 2011 or available from any unauthorised source at anytime, don’t buy them. They are not genuine. Report it to http://www.actionfraud.org.uk/ or London 2012 via brandprotection@london2012.com or your local police force.

Good Luck and safe buying.

19,000 scam emails in four days

More than 19,000 scam emails have poured into the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) since Action Fraud set up a dedicated email address for people targeted online by fraudsters.

For years, criminals have been sending letters telling recipients they have won the lottery, are in line for a massive inheritance or have won a competition, and that to claim the prize they only need pay an administration fee.

Today the objective remains the same, but electronic mail is now the favoured vehicle to distribute the tens of thousands of scam emails that seek to persuade people to pay an advanced fee for a sum of money they will never see.

Read about how you can forward on your scam emails to Action Fraud.

Part 3: Scams Awareness Month - There's Something About Mary!

I have never received so many Scam emails but then again I haven't sold a car via ebay before! One clear mistake is including my email address in the body of the advert, I will be changing that once I have posted this.



As you will see from the previous email the content is very similar to 'Alan's' message but this time instead of a gift for his wife, its a present for 'Mary's' brother in law (the email address is marybasham4real@gmail.com)! One thing you will notice from these scams is that if you reply to the message the subsequent reply is received back to your inbox very quickly.............they must be sat poised.

When I replied to the previous message I simply received an email back advising me to raise an invoice via Paypal, I haven't gone past this stage as the invoice would include my home address and I certainly don't want them to having that!

Don't forget Scams Awareness Month is currently running and you can get some useful tips from the Office of Fair Trading and Consumer Direct.

My previous postings on the scams I have received can be viewed via:

Part 1: Scams Awareness Month - Ebay Scam

Part 2: Scams Awareness Month - I Must Have Victim Written All Over Me!

Scams Awareness Month - I Must Have Victim Written All Over Me!

It is currently Scams Awareness Month and I previously highlighted a scam which I received via email regarding my ebay account and specifically around issues with a credit card (view the article here). So today I received an email regarding a car I am trying to sell (strangely enough its also listed on a popular auction site plus one other site) and here it is...............

Yeh Right!! (Click to enlarge)

Do people actually fall for this crap??!! I presume people do, I haven't seen any figures but I wonder what their success hit rates are. Needless to say the email has been deleted* and the sender a 'Alan James' via omnitelservice@gmail.com has been added to my spam list!

*NB: Although I did reply to the message one last time so lets see what comes back!

Scams Awareness Month - Ebay Scam

I couldn't have planned this better, but as we are in Scams Awareness Month I thought I would advise you of a scam I have received into my email inbox.

I recently received a message from 'eBay' informing me that my account had been suspended due to my credit/debit card being declined. I noticed that the email address for the sender wasn't an 'offical' eBay one, so I of course utilised the best free investigative tool in the modern world.....Google! Apparently this is a well know Phishing scam which has been around for some time.

Needless to say I didn't click on the link and enter my mothers maiden name, along with my bank details and my inside leg measurements!