I just got a phishing e-mail from "paypal"

[Trailrider1951]

Here it is:

Your account has been suspended (Ref - 20282152943)
Nov 25 at 10:33 AM
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𝖯𝖺𝗒𝖯𝖺𝖨
To: Trailrider1951

𝖸𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝖯𝖺𝗒𝖯𝖺𝖨 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝗁𝖺𝗌 𝖻𝖾𝖾𝗇 𝗍𝖾𝗆𝗉𝗈𝗋𝖺𝗋𝗂𝗅𝗒 𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗂𝖼𝗍𝖾𝖽

𝖸𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝖯𝖺𝗒𝖯𝖺𝖨 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝗁𝖺𝗌 𝖻𝖾𝖾𝗇 𝗅𝗂𝗆𝗂𝗍𝖾𝖽.pw9nKqy 𝖶𝖾 𝗁𝖺𝗏𝖾 𝖿𝗈𝗎𝗇𝖽 𝗌𝗎𝗌𝗉𝗂𝖼𝗂𝗈𝗎𝗌 𝖺𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗏𝗂𝗍𝗒 𝗈𝗇 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝗅𝖺𝗌𝗍 𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗇𝗌𝖺𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇.
ufDWk6O5
dfz3zvjcl 𝖠𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗍𝗂𝗆𝖾, 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗐𝗈𝗇'𝗍 𝖻𝖾 𝖺𝖻𝗅𝖾 𝗍𝗈 :
𝖲𝖾𝗇𝖽 𝖯𝖺𝗒𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍
𝖶𝗂𝗍𝗁𝖽𝗋𝖺𝗐 𝖥𝗎𝗇𝖽𝗌
𝖫𝗈𝗀𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗈 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝖯𝖺𝗒𝖯𝖺𝖨 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗍𝖺𝗄𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗉𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗊𝗎𝖾𝗌𝗍𝖾𝖽.0fuaT0
𝖫𝗈𝗀 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗈 𝖯𝖺𝗒𝖯𝖺𝖨
𝖲𝗂𝗇𝖼𝖾𝗋𝖾𝗅𝗒,

𝖯𝖺𝗒𝖯𝖺𝖨 𝖲𝗎𝗉𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍

It looks legit, except for the sending e-mail address. Of course, I did not click on the short cut button. Instead, I opened a new tab and logged in from there. My account is just fine, thank you very much. I've already forwarded the e-mail to [e-mail].
Please be aware of this scam!

[NCjack]

1. Thank you!

[HAB911]

2. Forward the entire email to [e-mail]

they can get a great deal of info for the headers

[Bev54]

51. I quit sending them on to their fraud dept.

I tend to get one every other month and I have not had a paypal account since 2002. I also get one each month for Netflix, amazon and different banks. It is just a way of life these days, they all get deleted.

[drray23]

3. Good thing you are aware.

Those scammers rely on the fact than even if most people like you are not fooled, a few will. So they send millions of scam emails and scam a few hundreds.

[NRaleighLiberal]

4. I get them all the time - from Paypal (so it seems), Amazon, Square, Squarespace

they all go into the spam folder.

[Fritz Walter]

34. Almost daily here.

Some are automatically routed to my Spam folder (using Bombast/Yfinity's app or web-mail site). Others make it through to the Inbox.

In addition to checking the sender's email -- usually the dead-giveaway in a phishing scheme -- I occasionally get a message that appears to be genuine, until I let my mouse hover over the "click-here" link and then carefully examine the full address shown in the little box that appears, (usually adjacent to the mouse pointer). In the vast majority of cases, the URL does not point to the institution which the sender would have me believe is legit. Hint: look at the domain name: ___.com. Clearly, this is a good approach for desktop browsers; may not be too functional on portable devices. Nine times out of ten, it gets tossed.

I've almost given up on forwarding the phishing message to the bank/app-owner/alleged-sender's "abuse" or other security mailbox.

Stay sharp everyone. Let these predators feast on the MAGAts.

And, speaking of feasting, I wish everyone here a happy Turkey Day!

[Mike 03]

5. Thank you

[albacore]

6. I got one from Comcast...

that said they need to update my email... or some shit like that. Looked VERY official.

The sender was [e-mail]

If that was legit, Comcast needs to make it clearer.

[jmowreader]

17. I also got one from Comcast

Which might work better if Comcast was actually in my area.

[ProfessorGAC]

28. Ooops!

Like the calls we get over an expiring extended car warranty we never had!
Yeah, that's probably not going to trip us up.

[captain queeg]

7. I get those all the time via email. Texts are usually about SS

Or some generic I identified “account”. I guess it’s easy to send millions of those out. If you get a couple hundred bites could be profitable for the scammer.

[Arkansas Granny]

8. I get those from time to time. I just forward them and then delete them.

[jmbar2]

9. Also from Netflix

NFLX just announced a rate increase, so the spammers are capitalizing on the news to phish.

[pandr32]

10. I have had those from Paypal, Netflix, and a bank I don't even use

...as well as others.
The tell is the address the message is sent from. The page looks official.
I have wondered how many people fall for these. I would bet there are many victims. This shit needs to be seriously cracked down on and perhaps public service announcements to warn innocent, gullible people who have learned to trust what looks real.
The dark arts for sure. I'd love to find out if this is state sponsored somewhere.

[Midnight Writer]

11. I've got this as well. Along with a couple of similar ones from Amazon.

[Wellstone ruled]

13. Just got one of those earlier today.

First was a bogus call from a 801 area code and a 101 number which usually is a Caribbean Number,second was a e-mail that landed in our Spam Box.

[Stallion]

12. always look for inauthentic e-mail address

I get a bunch every day--I report them as phishing attempts but I doubt anybody really monitors reports

anybody know if reporting phishing attempts does a thing?

[Faux pas]

14. I

got one a few weeks ago, I sent it to PayPal spoof.

[kskiska]

15. I got the same message.

They wanted your phone number and social security number.

[Crunchy Frog]

16. I've gotten a bunch of those.

I checked my account the first time, but would never, EVER click on anything in the email. I wonder how many people have been taken by that scam.

[shanti]

18. Yup

I've gotten them too, along with similar from Amazon. Even got a phone call from someone trying to "deliver" a package to my "gated community" and needed the passcode to get in. Problem is, I don't live in a gated community and I didn't order anything from Amazon!

I just forward every phishing/spearphishing email to the appropriate spoof department.

[ashredux]

19. I got one as well...followed what you did....it just Didn't "ring true" ...

[Drahthaardogs]

20. I just got one for Netflix

Scammers

[SCantiGOP]

44. Maybe not

Netflix just announced a price increase. I got an email from them yesterday about the new price.

[yaesu]

21. used to get a bunch of them but never check my pp email account in ages. nt

[bucolic_frolic]

22. I once got a phishing email from inside paypal

unexplained how I got it.

just close paypal before it's too late. They can freeze your account or issue you with chargeback up to 180 days after a transaction.

don't know how there are so many people with stolen accounts, and where does the merchandise go? i doubt there's a system to find out. as long as they can get the money back from you, there's no reason to look.

just close paypal before it's too late.

[Trailrider1951]

24. You know, I've had my Paypal acct for years, and had only 1 small problem.

I use it for contributions to DU, Actblue, personal gofundme solicitations, and some online purchases. I don't keep any cash there, and I really like not having my credit card number spread around. I'm sorry your experience has been less than optimal, but I think I'm going to keep my account. YMMV.

[bucolic_frolic]

27. Thanks, obviously, you can do what you like

I plan to close mine. I was amazed at the tales on Twitter #boycottpaypal One user claims to have been tied up on more than 80 grand since March I think it was.

I just think there must be other ways to pay ... I think Google has an app, I've heard of Venmo and several others.

The crooks have reached a level of sophistication and knowledge that they are able to game the system. It's all verbal and email.

Free merchandise on eBay ... ask for a return on low priced items ... most sellers won't absorb the return shipping, get a refund.

Some claim it's not as described. Claim they never got it. Oh it was delivered to their porch, someone stole it.

That's why with valuable merchandise, sellers require signatures. But even then there are cases of returns with damaged goods that don't match. For some reason the few I read were in UK.

i'm skeptical of managed payments, all CC transactions. That's a potential mine field.

I think there are sites that don't allow returns, and only use merchant accounts.

[birdographer]

23. I get a lot of these.

They look so real, I know that there are people out there that believe them and follow the instructions and most likely get robbed blind. I feel sorry for them.

[TheBlackAdder]

25. I report them all to comoany, even if I don't have their service, then flag it as a Phishing email.

.

I've been getting PayPal, FedEx, UPS, Amazon.

If you open up the email payload, most often they originate from AWS (Amazon Web Services).

The majority of scam sites and redirect emails are from Amazon free and $1 subscription accounts.
You report them, and a day later they are running under a different AWS account.

Get the originator IP address, from the email details, open a command prompt and enter as example: nslookup xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx. This will give you the host name and most probably there will be a virtual AWS server name.

.

[William Seger]

26. These scams are on the rise to trick people into downloading ransom ware

That's a virus that encrypts your hard drive and demands a ransom to unlock it. If you ever get one of those installed, do NOT make it worse by paying the ransom; you won't be getting your system back either way.

[bucolic_frolic]

29. Another reason to backup critical information

either via USB, Drop Box, or another hard drive.

And have backup recover/install disks, or use Linux which is readily reinstalled. It's a hassle to set it all up again, but with backups and the original install DVD/USB, it can be completed in a matter of a few hours. One evening.

[James48]

30. Note- it's a spoof that says PayPai - with a capital I

PayPaI, with a capital I .

Never believe PayPal emails that you didn’t request.

[SnowCritter]

31. I get those, too

And I don't have a paypal account.

[Joinfortmill]

32. Thanks for the warning.

[meow2u3]

33. I forward the entire email to [e-mail]

Then I send it to my spam box and delete it permanently.

I got one of those spoof emails in my inbox this morning. Just check the sender's email and/or the full header on your email. It's not from paypal unless both apply: the sender's email is paypal.com AND you're addressed by name.

[leighbythesea2]

35. Ive been getting same

From them.
Also didnt click.
But it's disconcerting.

[crimycarny]

36. Look out for invoices as well--going through legit paypal

Apparently anyone with a PayPal account can send you an invoice. I got an email from legit PayPal that said “The Department of Motor Vehicles sent you an invoice for $16.00. Click here to pay”.

At first I thought it might be legit, but logged into my PayPal account to get more info. There was an invoice for $16 sitting there waiting for me to pay. But digging into the senders PayPal I noticed it belonged to “Nicole Bailey”. I looked at my email again and saw a graphic included in the alleged invoice that was “DMV*USA”. I reported it to PayPal and they shut down the PayPal account. I posted a warning on FB and a friend posted she got the same PayPal email, also allegedly from “The Department of Motor Vehicles”, but in her case the “owner” was a different name (Sandy something). Which tells me someone created a lot of fake PayPal accounts and sent out a ton of these invoices.

It was a good heads up that ANYONE can send you an invoice. So watch out for that as well.

[keithbvadu2]

37. I get a lot of them offering $50,000 for filling out a survey.

I get a lot of them offering $50,000 for filling out a survey.

Lucky me!

Home Depot, banks, Fed Ex, post office, many others.

All bs.

As if the post office has money to spend like that on surveys.

[yellowwoodII]

38. Yes Several of them

I've forwarded all of them to the company and they have responded.

I'd like to know why this illegal activity isn't prosecuted.

[marble falls]

39. And it is the most convincing screen I've seen yet, even the address on it is almost believable ...

When I get any of these (and the PayPal one has tried me three or four times) I go to PayPal through my account to check and change my password.

I had an Amazon phisher about three months ago that had an almost believable address, too.

Then there were several attempts to blackmail me for Bitcoin by several who claimed they had taken control of my camera and contact list and were going to send videos of me "reacting" to porn sites to everyone I e-mail.

Neat trick: I don't use porn sites, I do not keep a contact list and the tape over my camera is never removed.

The porn thing started after I clicked what was supposed to be a site (listed on Pinterest) on a natural wines, and I was fooled enough to list my e-mail. When I tried to explore the site, none of the options in the header worked and I got out fast. I disconnected from Pinterest. There were a lot of links there that wouldn't work or didn't work right.

The net is one place where vigilance is required.

[Shoonra]

40. Thanks for the warning! I get a lot of these.

I get a lot of these scam messages, not just from Paypal (I do not have an account) but pretending to be from a variety of big companies that lots of people would do business with; for example, Chase Bank, Bank of America, American Express, Amazon, etc.

The scammers are playing the odds that some recipients will be clients of the pretended source and fall for the "your account is frozen" message. The artwork is impressive and authentic looking, but sometimes the proofreading of the message is defective.


The offered link back to the company is also fake and sends you to the scammer's phishing questionnaire where they will want your name, account number, possibly your SSN, and maybe instruct you to send money (online or maybe by snailmail) someplace (not to the pretended company's real office address).

Usually these scam emails do not address you by your real name nor even by your email handle. Ignore these messages, do not even click the link. If you had a real problem with the real company, the real company would address you by your proper name and possibly include your snailmail address or some other authentic personal info to show they really have you as a customer.

[George II]

41. Most of the time, if you move your curser over the email, the ENTIRE email is one big link...

I keep getting emails saying my "account" is suspended, except that it's for a bank or organization with which I do NOT have an account!

[Rebl2]

42. My husband

and I get these often. I get them from PayPal and Amazon. My husband gets them from Amazon and Wells Fargo bank-we don’t have an account at Wells Fargo.

[Hulk]

43. I've had that email a couple of times now recently

I did the same thing.... didn't bother to click on their tab rather went straight to my Paypal account.

I'm getting the same notices for Amazon.

[Chainfire]

45. There is a trick that foils them every time

I only open my email about once a month....

[housecat]

46. New to DU

Well I didn't expect my first reply at DU would be this, but then who expected the last four years? i got one from Amazon -- well not exactly FROM Amazon. I called customer service and got a scammer who told me my account had been compromised. You can fill in the rest. Miraculously I didn't send any money, which I was almost stupid enough to do. And I did contact FTC for what it's worth.
So have a safe and happy Thanksgiving y'all. I've been wanting to join some of the discussions, so may my second attempt at least have some humor, and keep my occasional bouts of stupidity to myself.
Peace

[Trailrider1951]

53. Welcome to DU housecat

You're among friends.

[housecat]

57. Many thanks

[klook]

55. Hey, housecat! Welcome to the madhouse!

If you've been lurking for a bit, you have an idea of what this board is like. It's a great place to interact with (mostly) like-minded people, and there are many forums and groups that you might want to explore. It can be addictive and sometimes maddening, like any discussion board, but on the whole my experiences here have been very positive.

Pro Tip: I often start with "Latest Threads" to see what's percolating and current, but I also like to go to the Home page to get an overview -- and to see EarlG's excellent "Pic of the Moment" posts. You may find a different entry point that works better for you.

Enjoy, and I look forward to your future posts.

[housecat]

58. Thanks for the tips

Ok this is my second response to a response, and I'm feeling accomplished. Thanks for the tips!

[DesertRat]

56. Welcome to DU!

[housecat]

59. Happy happy joy joy

Thanks for the warm welcome. This is going to be fun

[klook]

47. Interesting. This is why I use disposable forwardable email addresses for most online transactions.

If I receive spam or phishing attempts to an address, I can tell exactly where the perps got it from, and I can delete or change that address and alert the vendor that apparently got hacked. I do have a PayPal account, and it's linked to a disposable email address that I don't use anywhere else, and that forwards to a real one that I don't publish.

I also make payments with a credit card via PayPal, not bank account funds transfer. That way if I need to cancel a fraudulent credit card transaction, I can easily contact the card provider. I've only had to do that a couple of times in my life, but it's nice to know I can if need be.

Smart of you to recognize this and handle it the way you did. I worry that as I get older my defenses will weaken, and that's one of the reasons I've put barriers around my real email addresses and real financial account information.

[OMGWTF]

48. I get these criminal emails all day long. ALWAYS look to see where it's being sent from.

Here is a list of the eight most-frequently spoofed company emails that I get, along with the email address to forward it to the company's IT fraud dept. so they can shut down these rat bastards. If I'm in a pissy mood, I'll wait a day until after the real company gets the fake email to start an investigation and then send the criminal an email telling them that they will die in prison.

PayPal - [e-mail].

Apple - report [e-mail]

Amazon - [e-mail]

Netflix - phishing @netflix.com

Ebay - spoof@ebay

American Express - [e-mail]

Chase Bank - [e-mail]

USPS - [e-mail]

[IrishEyes]

50. I have gotten those from Amazon, Netflix and PayPal.

I never use PayPal or order from Amazon. I don't order online very often. I also have never had a Netflix account.

[lillypaddle]

52. My security software (Eset) alerted me a few days ago

that I had logged into a fake website, and while the threat was blocked and removed, 6 of my accounts' passwords were compromised. Paypal was one of them. I changed my passwords on the said accounts, except for Paypal, which I really don't use. I cancelled the account there.

So, I don't know, maybe it's a coincidence, but be sure it really was a fake email. YMMV.

[Dem2]

54. I get so many of those

Usually on an account that isn't affiliated with the account that's targeted. Or with a bank that I have no account.

And yes, the Paypal ones that give one a temporary BP spike.