Stag

Came across this from a friend and I thought I would let you know about it...



I rarely notify folks about a scam, but this is the most sophisticated "spoofing" scam that I have seen (where they send you an e-mail saying you need to update your account, faking an e-mail address to try to get you to give them your credit card). It did not get sent to my bulk folder.

Instead of only directing you to his website, this scammer has the gall to then redirect you to the REAL Amazon.com site. You do NOT see the referring website in the process, so it looks like you go directly to the Amazon.com page unless you take a peek at the back button on your browser, in which the scammer's website is listed.

There are several hints that it is a scam, but you can only catch some if you have your e-mail set to show full headers, which I did not in my Yahoo Mail, though I turned it on to check it out.

Here are some reasons you know it is a scam:

1) Spelling errors...Amazon would not spell "you" with teen girl instant message speak "u." I did not notice these until my second reading due to conditioning from reading girl IM's etc...I was used to this shorthand and did not think anything of it at first. So, if you are conditioned due to online chat or something not to think anything is odd by such spelling, make sure to pay attention to the spelling when you read the e-mail.

2) None of the originating e-mail info in the headers is from amazon.com. Instead, they belong to stone.he.net. You have to have headers on to realize this though!

3) If you right-click on the supposed Amazon.com link and check its properties, you see it goes to wastedgoods.com, not Amazon.com.

4) Contrary to what they the scammer says, none of my account options were shut off on Amazon.com when it redirected me to the legit site. Plus, the help section did not indicate Amazon ever sends e-mails out to verify account info.

5) Right click on the pop-up box (which comes from the wasted goods site right before it sends you to the real Amazon page). The link goes to wasted goods, not amazon, so it clearly is a hoax. If this were legit, Amazon would have popped up the box.

BE CAREFUL FOLKS.

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Here is the e-mail:

Dear Amazon client, We recently reviewed your account, and suspect that your Amazon account may have been accessed by an unauthorized third party.Protecting the security of your account and of the Amazon network is out primary concern.

Therefore, as a preventative measure, we have temporarily limited access to sensitive Amazon account features.

Click the link below in order to regain access to your account: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/fl...498192-8573767

Note: If u use popup killers please disable them.A popup window will apear please fill out the form with your corect information.

For more information about how to protect your account, please visit Amazon Security Center.

Sincerely, The Amazon Security Department Team.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and apriciate your assistance in helping us maintain the integrity of the entire Amazon system. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter. Please do not reply to this mail.Mail sent to this address cannot be answered. For assistance, log in to your Amazon account and chose the "Help" link in the header of any page.

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Here is WHOIS registration info on wastedgoods.com:

Whois Output for: wastedgoods.com

Domain Name Owner: wasted gods ltd. 8 Palmer Street Quincy, MA 02169 US

Administrative Contact: wasted gods ltd. Whitaker, Orion [OW-10] 8 Palmer Street Quincy, MA 02169, US Phone: 978 828-1490 Email: akyrra00@yahoo.com

Technical Contact: Omnis Network Network, Omnis [ON-1] 3655 Torrance Blvd Suite 230 Torrance, CA 90503, US Phone: (310)316-2744 Fax: (310)316-4991 Email: nicreg@omnis.com

Billing Contact: wasted gods ltd. Whitaker, Orion [OW-10] 8 Palmer Street Quincy, MA 02169, US Phone: 978 828-1490 Email: akyrra00@yahoo.com

Record Information: Domain Record Created: July 06, 2004 00:00 Domain Record Updated: July 07, 2004 07:13 Domain Record Expires: July 06, 2005 00:00 DNS Information: Name Server: ns1.omnis.com Name Server: ns2.omnis.com

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