Better Business Bureau is issuing an urgent SCAM alert cautioning businesses and consumers about an email appearing to be circulating from the Council of Better Business Bureaus regarding a complaint. The email contains a dangerous link and appears to direct recipients to a BBB website.
This is a SCAM. BBB has updated its advice and recommends the following to anyone who receives the email:
- Do not to open any attachments
- Do not click on any links
- Delete the email from your inbox, and then delete it again from your trash or recycling folder
- Run a full system scan using reputable virus software
The purpose of fake messages is to trick businesses and consumers into providing the following personal information:
- Name and username.
- Address and phone number.
- Password or PIN.
- Bank account number.
- ATM/debit or credit card number.
- Credit card validation code (CVC) or card verification value (CVV).
- Social security number (SSN).
Do Not Give This Information Out
Previously, BBB had recommended running a full system scan only if the recipient had clicked on the link or opened the attachment. But due to the virulent nature of the virus, the new recommendation is for everyone who receives it to do the scan. In offices or homes that are networked, all computers should be scanned.
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 says it is from. Complaints go out from the local BBBs, not from the headquarters office.
- 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, go to www.bbb.org to find your local BBB, and send them a new email to ask if you have a complaint (do not Reply to the email you received, or forward it to them). They have been swamped with requests, so you may not hear back immediately.
CBBB is working with federal law enforcement agencies to identify the perpetrator of this fraud, and is also looking into other measures it can take to help prevent future phishing scams from spreading.
Please foward the email to
phishing@council.bbb.org or report any information received to BBB’s
Scam Source ,
and then delete it .
Federal Law Enforcement is investigating.
View an example of the email.Note: the email has taken on numerous forms.
