Don't Believe Everything You Read

I’m a skeptic. Some would even say I’m a cynic. I just think I’m cautiously realistic.

And I don’t believe everything I read or see.

The Internet has opened up a whole new world for us, and unfortunately there are those who are taking advantage of that. And while these cyber scammers continue to profit from their cyber scams, we get more and more scared.

Is someone trying to steal my information? Is someone going to steal my identity? Is someone going to steal my money?

My poor husband is one of those people. He spends countless hours running spyware scans, virus scans, erasing histories, cookies and temp files. And while I advocate all of these things, I do so as a matter of cautious reality, not to instill fear and terror. I’m still trying to convey that to him. I think he spends more time “cleaning” his computer than he does actually using it!

Criminals (yes, that's what they are) set up websites and send you emails telling you your information is at risk. Here’s one example.

There is a new wave of email scams disguised as Microsoft Security Bulletins. You may receive an email message which urges you to immediately install a cumulative security patch for the "plug and play" vulnerability. It looks deceptively like a Microsoft Security Bulletin, so you have no reason to question it, right? Wrong!

Once you visit the site (by clicking the link in the email) and run the code, you are infected with a password stealing Trojan Horse. Lots of people still fall for this because we want to be sure our systems are patched and we’re protected. It is just a sophisticated way of taking advantage of the fear created in the marketplace.

Here are just a few ways to protect yourself:

• Only download security updates directly from the Microsoft website

• If there are misspellings in the email, chances are it’s a scam

• Never click a link in an email

• Never open an attachment in an email
  
  
  Here's a screenshot of the scam email:
  
  
  
  . . . Stephanie
  

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email scams, microsoft, Stephanie Trahd