Another Recent Email Hijack: “I Would Like To Introduce A New Company…”
I’ve gotten an increasing number of reports from people who either received messages similar to the following, or discovered that such messages had been sent from their email accounts:
Subject: Hello
Dear friend,
i would like to introduce a good company who trades mainly in electronic products, They provide the best service to customers,they provide you with original products of good quality,and what is more,the price is a surprising happiness to you!
The web address: (removed for safety)
If you check online you’ll find reports of this coming from users of Hotmail, Gmail and other email services. There are variations in the scam. Some may cite a different web site, or may have a different subject or message in the email.
If you receive a message like this, the important thing is NOT to click on any links because it will infect your computer with viruses. The same goes for messages you may receive via instant messaging (IM), Facebook, Twitter, or other means. Inform the person who sent it to you by another means (like the good old fashioned telephone) to let them know they have been hijacked.
How can you tell if a message is real or not? If it seems generic, contains no subject or a bland subject like “hi” or “hello,” doesn’t mention you by name, contains spelling, grammar or punctuation errors, or has been sent en masse to a large number of people, those are indications it may be a scam. Ask yourself: Is this the sort of message I would expect this person to send?
If your account has been hijacked, it’s vital to change your password immediately. Here’s some information on how to create strong passwords:
And here is some more information on what to do if your email account is hijacked:
Be sure to scan your computer with your security software. If you’re using free software you should consider purchasing a security software suite. You should also check your email signature and any autoresponders you may have set, as they may have been modified to send malicious links to your contacts. Inform your contacts that your account was hacked and that they should not respond to any scam messages they have received. And you should report the incident to your provider.
These hacks are becoming more and more prevalent. It is absolutely vital that you protect yourself by using strong passwords that are unique for every account, and that you stay vigilant about your computer’s security.
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