Gone Phishin' -- How to Avoid Phishing Scams
Phishing is a way a scam artist likes to collect private and personal information. Normally, phishing occurs when someone or something hacks an email account or uses a bogus email to contact unknowing victims. When contact has been made, the phisher will ask for and collect private or personal information like user names, passwords, bank accounts and social security numbers. It's like fishing -- they bait you with a legitimate reason, hook you when you unknowing send your private information to a scam artist. The best way to avoid phishing is by knowing what to look for and to NOT give out any personal information to anyone unless you absolutely know who you are giving your information to. The 'Bait': Email is a way most criminals like to phish. They will send you email (most of the time it gets caught in your 'Spam' mailbox) asking for personal information like a password. Check out the example below from a recent Yahoo! phishing email that was circ