Be very careful about clicking links in emails, even if they seem to come from a legitimate source.

Notice the email below, which I received this morning – red flags are marked in color, with explanatory notes:

This email arrived the day before my actual credit card was set to expire. While the message looks convincing to the untrained eye, it’s phonier than a 7-dollar bill.

Things you can do to protect yourself:

1. If you get an email like this, either call your supplier’s customer service number or go directly to their website.
2. Never click embedded links in an email, it’s just not “safe computing.”
3. Never open attachments in an email unless you know exactly what they are, even if they appear to come from your dearest friend.

There are countless scumbags out there, and they want your money and your information. Be safe, be careful, and watch out for your loved ones.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Footnotes

[1] Email from a legitimate source will never have alphabet soup as part of the email address.
[2] Look at that URL up there: account.comcast.net.1r9.is-into-cars.com. A web address for a legitimate concern will not have jumbles of letters or numbers, or extraneous words in it. This website had been taken down by the evening, but I’m guessing the douchebags got a few uneducated people to enter their information with the millions of emails they sent out. The URL led to a very realistic-looking website with a login request. As is my wont, I went there and entered scathing obscenities for my username and password.
[3] This is lousy English. “you will be charged immediately, as soon as payment is received” makes no sense. If your payment is received, there is no need to charge you.