Hi Cathy -

I get these PayPal scams a lot - if you still have the email, forward it to spoof@paypal.com and they try to track them and shut them down. Those sites always look very professional, and usually have some kind of language in them about how they are trying to protect you...they are deactivating your account blah blah blad - but the real PayPal won't ever have a "link" for you to click on to put in your password and their authentic emails will address you by your name, not "Dear PayPal customer" etc.  

Lately I've been getting fake "log in here -  security breach -danger danger danger" emails from supposed "banks".  They look real.  You're pretty safe if you don't click on anything, and if one comes from what looks like your own bank, close the email and just log into your bank like you normally do - but don't click on the link in the email.  

These emails are unsat.

Cindy

I get at least 200 scams a DAY...everything from PayPal, to eBay, to every bank in existence.  I'm sick and tired of these crooks trying to sell me Rolex watches, software, V*ia*gr*a, and you-know-what enlargement pills.  About 90% land in my bulk/junk folder but I still have to scan the subject/from lines to be sure that a good email didn't get filtered into the junk folder by mistake.  There has to be a better way.  On a good note, I don't get as much junk mail in my snail mailbox as I used to.  

I never thought I'd be the one to say this (because I'm about a cheap--wait, uh--frugal as you can get) but maybe it is time for free email to go away.  Maybe it should be that you can "receive" all the email you want for free but if you want to "send" it, it will cost you. I hate the thought of this but I spend at least 1 - 2 hours a day going through my email!  I have spam filters set up or it would take even longer.  The filters can't catch everything and if you aren't careful, they filter out some good stuff too.  Very frustrating.

Sorry you had to go through all that Cathy - they got me a couple of years ago, had to do the same thing and I guess I learned the hard way.

Velda - those "enlargement" pills emails are the WORST.  I'd venture to guess that 95% of my spam email is for that...then last night, flipping through the TV - I came across two different infomercials (okay, could have been regular commercials - but they were the type were "concerned people" were talking about an "important to ALL Americans" issue and of course, it was the enlargement pills....

HELP me! :)  

Really now...I know that this isn't RE related, but as an aside...Can this be THAT much of a problem????  

Give us a BREAK already ...and let us RELAX for a moment...

Okay, my "vent" to the American Advertising Community now over...for today...:)

Cindy -

In a way it is RE related. The more junk like this out there the more likely it is that our message to a prospect gets lost.  Email used to be a valuable communication vehicle. I believe it has lost some of its effectiveness but still can be a valuable tool when used for very specific, individual communications.   I used to send out a monthly newsletter.  It finally got to the point that less than a third were opened by the recipient.  I stopped sending it out almost 2 years ago. I don't think anyone noticed.  

Turn them in  forwad the e mails   to    spoof@paypal.com  

When I had my e Bay store I used to get a bunch of scam phoney pay pal e mails...

VanceBay

Oh shoot

I should have read the post a little closer about Spoof to PayPal

Sorry

Another way to avoid phishing e-mails is to never open any website from a link in an email. Even if you are very sure the e-mail is legit. Open your browser and type in the website address in your browser to access the site.

I am with Velda on the spam. With all the technology, one would think there would be better filtering options to block spammers. I do not believe we should have to pay for e-mail, but it may help to charge if one wanted to send a block of e-mails. I would be for that approach and it may help with the spam problem.

Oh, wait a minute! If that happened, I wouldn't get those lovely letters from Nigeria! Gosh, what would I do with all the money I didn't save?

Cathy, I'm glad you didn't fall for this scam. There are so many subtle scams going on -- online, mostly, but also phone scams aimed at credit card owners, etc. -- it is hard to know what is legit and what is fraud. That ".com" / ".us" difference is something not many people would have noticed. But when they ask for your private information like that, always turn tail and run, and report it.

Brian Wilson, Zolve.com

There's one on ebay that I fell for.  I actually clicked on a listing on ebay.  The screen flashed and it went back to the "login screen."  I obliged and went about my ebay business.  

The next day I get a confirmation of my "ebay listing."  I hadn't placed an item for sale on ebay, so I checked it out.  It was a listing for pornographic materials.  Ebay security very quickly helped me sort it out, removed the listing and the charges from my account, changed my user name, but kept my feedback records.  Took only about an hour total, but now I know that if that happens again, just shut down your computer and walk away.

Wow, Belinda.  I would never have known about that scam.  good for you for catching it!!  Catz, glad you figured it out too.  you two are smart cookies ; )

shelly

On the eBay scams - I also constantly get emails regarding a buyer who hasn't received information to ship from me on my listed item - guess what - haven't any items for sale - so that's another one to just delete.

Velda -you're right about how it's real estate related in a way - I don't think people take a chance opening our emails anymore - or the Greeting Card etc.   I don't even open Greeting Cards anymore - even if I think I know the sender - just too risky.  It's a darn shame that a few ruin it for everyone.

Cathy:

I also get about 20 of these scams.  Dr. So & So, paypal, and my favorite is the one that looks official from my bank.  I report it as spam on my webmail but they must have millions of different email address sites.  

Anyway, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.  

Believe it or not I almost (or sort of did) fall for that one about a year ago. I'm pretty scrupulous about not EVER responding to emails requesting personal info.  However last X-mas right after actually purchasing something on Ebay I got an email saying my Paypal payment did not go through and I had to change my login for security reasons.  The timing was uncanny.  (They must troll for recent purchases)

So I click on the link to a very official looking Paypal page and start to proceed with changing my login, etc.  I think I got through the first page of personal info when the alarm bell went off but I wasn't certain how much info they had gotten from me.

I immediately went into my real Paypal account and changed everything.  I also put a fraud alert on my credit account for the next twelve months.  There was nothing to report during that year and it just recently expired.  I didn't renew and I feel like it's an omen that I saw this post.  Maybe I need to pay for another year of fraud alerts just to be safe.

What on earth is this world coming to anyway?