January 20, 2012 - Little Rock, AR Your Better Business Bureau® is warning businesses and consumers of a email phishing scam using BBB’s trusted name. There are two versions of the phishing scam that use a false BBB e-mail address to entice recipients to access potentially damaging hyperlinks and attachments. Neither our database, or e-mail system have not been compromised by these attacks.
One version of the scam is what appears to be an email from the Better Business Bureau, using BBB’s name and ‘Start With Trust’ tagline. This email is flooding inboxes across the nation. Emails purport to be from the Utah BBB and have a link that appears to be www.bbb.org. THIS IS A SCAM.
Below is the exact text of this scam email:
Subject: BBB case # 216145442347
To the Urgent Attention of the Owner/ Manager!
Re: Case # 216145442347
The Better Business Bureau would like to inform you, that one of your clients has recently forwarded us a complaint relative to their business relations with you. Please use the link below to review the contents of the complaint: http://www.bbb.org/
In order to save your time and good customer relations, we strongly recommend that you provide the BBB with verification of your position regarding this case in writing by January 31, 2012 . Failure to promptly pay attention to this matter may have an influence on the Reliability Report we give to consumers about your company.
We are looking forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Larry Kaye
Dispute Counselor
snieves@utah.bbb.org
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The newest version of this phishing scam appears to be directed to current BBB Accredited Businesses requesting the recipient to click on a link to review the information on file. This version does not show to be sent from a BBB email address.
Below is the exact text of this scam email:
From: stevenschertzer@verizon.net [mailto:stevenschertzer@verizon.net]
Sent: Wednesday, January 18, 2012 8:08 AM
Subject: [BULK] BBB SBQ Form (Ref#14-22228000-0-5)
Importance: Low
Thank you for supporting your Better Business Bureau (BBB). Your BBB receives more than 6,500 requests for information every day and provides reliability reports to consumers 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, and 7 days a week.
As a service to BBB Accredited Businesses, we try to ensure that the information we provide to potential customers is as accurate as possible. In order for us to provide the correct information to the public, we ask that you review the information that we have on file for your company.
We encourage you to use our ONLINE FORM to provide us with this updated information. The URL below will take you directly to this form on our website:
CLICK HERE to login to your BBB account (UserID: 22227099 Password: pv6r4hm)
You may also complete the form on the reverse side of this letter and mail to PO Box 1000; DuPont, WA; 98327; or fax to (206)436-5496.
Please look carefully at your telephone and fax numbers on this sheet, and let us know any and all numbers used for your business (including 800, 900, rollover, and remote call forwarding). Our automated system is driven by telephone/fax numbers, so having accurate information is critical for consumers to find information about your business easily. In addition, many consumers may search our database using your e-mail and/or Web address, so please be sure to include this information as well. As a BBB accredited business, you receive a free hyperlink from your online reliability report to your company Web site if provided to us.
Thank you again for your support, and we look forward to receiving this updated information.
Sincerely,
Accreditation Services
If you receive an email saying your business has a complaint filed against it with BBB, there are several things you can do to authenticate it:
- Look for typos, grammatical errors, etc. in the text that could indicate it originated overseas.
- Check to see who it states it is from. All email correspondence from the Arkansas BBB will be sent from an Arkansas BBB specific email address. (ie: @arkansas.bbb.org)
- Hover your mouse over the link to see if its destination is really a bbb.org address.
- Copy and paste the link into Notepad (not Word). Notepad does not support html, so if the link is a fake bbb.org address, the real link will show up.
- If you still are not sure, call our BBB at 501-664-7274 to verify the legitimacy of the email.
Should you receive either of these emails, please disregard the message, report any information received to BBB's Scam Source, and then delete it. If you clicked on any of the links or opened any attachments within these emails, BBB recommends running a virus scan on your computer and working with IT professionals if a virus is found.
Follow these basic tips to avoid malware and phishing attacks:
- Do NOT open any attachments.
- Do NOT click on any links, even if it looks legitimate.
- Delete the email from your inbox, and then delete it again from your trash or recycling folder.
- Run a full system scan using a reputable virus software scanner.
Chris Garver, Chief Information Officer at the Council of Better Business Bureaus, recommends that all domain owners set up a sender policy framework (SPF) and set their spam filter to use it. “Using the SPF standard helps fight spam and phishing attacks by allowing your email servers to verify whether an email is legitimate…or not,” he says.
Microsoft offers a simple, four-step process for setting up an SPF: www.microsoft.com/mscorp/safety/content/technologies/senderid/wizard/
For more information, please visit: www.bbb.org