What are the different types of emails?
There are three types of emails you could receive, the emails you want, Spam, and Scams. So, what’s the difference between these three types of emails?
Emails you want: These are the emails you are receiving from family, friends, or emails that you’ve signed up and allowed permission to receive.
Spam Emails: This refers to junk mail or unsolicited emails that are typically caught by spam filters provided by Gmail, Outlook, or other email service providers. Generally, these emails are harmless, but be aware and report as spam so you don’t clutter the inbox.
Scam Emails: These are fraudulent emails that are trying to deserve you into providing your personal information. Scams come in many flavors, Spoofing, Phishing, Bogus offers, or requests, and there is many more. These emails typically request personal information like, passwords, address, bank account, credit card, phone number, etc. NEVER PROVIDE THESE.
Email Scam Protection Tips
There are many easy steps you can take to ensure you don’t fall victim to email scams and phishing attacks. These attacks have gotten a lot more sophisticated in recent years, especially with the pandemic, there’s been a lot of targeted scams.
Here are 5 points to remember when looking at emails:
NEVER GIVE ANYONE YOUR PASSWORD
It doesn’t matter who is asking for your password, nobody should be asking you for your password or login information via email. Business like Apple, Netflix, Twitter, Amazon, Chase Bank, etc. will never ask for your login information to access your account. Block the sender and delete the email.
AVOID UNSOLICITED ATTACHMENTS
Scammers can use attachments as a means to transfer malware or viruses onto your computer. Make sure any attachments you receive are from a trusted contact, and that you’re expecting any files.
SOCIAL ENGINEERING
Scammers scrape the internet for personal information to use it against you by impersonating friends or people you may know. This information could be found on public profiles or data breaches. (What do you need to do after a data breach)
KNOW WHAT YOU’RE CLICKING ON
Make sure to never just start clicking all over an email, clicking on a link could grab your information, location, and data. In addition to grabbing your person data, it can also auto download files onto your computer.
IT IS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE
If it sounds like it’s an offer of a lifetime, it’s probably going to be a scam, and should be deleted and block right away.
Think you have fallen victim to a scam?
If you’re not sure of what to do, take the proactive approach, don’t hesitate to contact someone that can help you. Trusted sources include your IT department, or a someone in your family that knows cyber security. NEVER call or click on the contact information in a scam email.
Additional Resources
Learn more about phishing scams: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-recognize-and-avoid-phishing-scams
Report a scam to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission): www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/
When your think information is lost or exposed: https://www.identitytheft.gov/Info-Lost-or-Stolen