Tips to Identify a Scam Email
Scam emails, also known as phishing emails, often feature the following:
- Legitimate company logos and return addresses,
- Phone numbers such as 1-800 numbers.
- Will use real employee names from a company
- Emails addresses and websites will use similar variation of the company’s website or email address
Small Changes to websites and email addresses: This is usually the first and best tip-off that something is not legitimate.
Email Example:
- Legit: jade@schlesingergroup.com
- Fraud: jade@schlesingergrp.com (group truncated)
Mouse over a hyperlink to see actual address vs what is displayed, hyperlink example:
- Legit: http://www.schlesingergroup.com/
- Fraud: http://www.schlesingergroup.com/
- When hovering over the above hyperlinks, the fraud link goes to schlesingergrp.com even though display name is the same
Spelling and grammar: If you’re looking at an email with a lot of spelling or grammatical errors, it may be a scam.
- Legit: “It has come to our attention that your account may need to be updated”
- Fraud: “It has come to our attentions that you’re accoutns has need to be updated”
Mass mailings: If you receive an email and there are a ton of other recipients listed in the “to” or “cc” fields, chances are it’s a scam.
Punctuation or overuse of CAPS: Beware of emails that try to get your attention by using all capital letters, especially in the subject line. Over-the-top emotional content or messages of dire warnings may be a scam.
- Legit: “You’re Invited: Shopping research happening Between 18-Jan-2018 and 22-Jan-2018”
- Fraud: “URGENT RESEARCH!!!!! MUST RESPOND IMMEDIATELY!!!!!!”
Receiving money unprompted: Payments are usually provided after you have completed a task. If you are receiving a payment without any prior knowledge or approval, this is most likely a scam.
Here is an example of a recent scam that used our name and logo and highlights some of the tips above. If you have received something similar, it is not valid
One final tip: Don’t respond to a spam email. By doing so, you confirm that your email account is active and could receive even more spam as a result.
If you are unsure of an email’s authenticity and it appears to be from Schlesinger Group or Inspired Opinions, forward the email to help@inspiredopinions.com and we will provide confirmation of the validity.
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