ATM/DEBIT ALERT
December 23, 2003
Fraudulent Emails Appearing to be from Visa® and Financial Institutions Sent to Email Users as Part of Scam
Recently, the Visa® logo and name, and the names and logos of several financial institutions, were used without their consent in a scheme to acquire sensitive information from unsuspecting web and email users. Visa and others are working aggressively with law enforcement officials to resolve this matter as soon as possible.
Bank systems have not been compromised in any way, but cyber-criminals are "spamming" large numbers of recipients (without actual knowledge of their banking affiliation) with fraudulent emails requesting email addresses and other confidential information. This include financial account numbers, IDs and passwords. These cyber-criminals have copied the logos and the content styles of widely known and respected financial institutions in an attempt to elicit a response from a recipient who may or may not be a customer of that financial institution.
These fraudulent emails are attempts to collect email addresses for sale to other "spamers", or more seriously, attempts to collect confidential financial information that can be used to commit a more serious financial fraud. Most of these emails do not specify debit or credit cards so cardholders could potentially have both types of cards compromised.
Below is an
example of the type of emails that various web and email users have received:
Subject: Visa System Updated Confirmation Required
Dear Visa customer:
This email is to inform you of a recent update we made to our systems. To avoid service interruption we require that you confirm your account number as soon as possible.
Please take a moment to confirm your account by going to the following address:
http://www.visa.com/... {remainder_truncated}
Follow these steps:
- Confirm your account by clicking the link above
- Verify your visa card information
- Your account will then be updated, you may continue using your visa without any interruptions.
***Please note: If you FAIL to update your visa card, it will be temporarily disabled.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
The visa team is working hard to bring you the best services on the web.
Thank you for your business.
The Visa Staff.
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Don not reply to this e-mail, for assistance contact the customer service team.
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Again, the text of the email above is fraudulent. If you or any of your customers comes across such an email, please contact the representative for the company that is being targeted for fraud.
