Internet
Alert: Scammers Sending Fake FBI E-mails Seeking Personal Information
Have you received
a suspicious e-mail from FBI Director Robert Mueller or another FBI
official? If so, it is a fake. The FBI and the Internet Crime Complaint
Center (IC3) have increasingly received reports of fraudulent schemes
misrepresenting FBI agents, officials, and/or FBI Director Robert S.
Mueller, III. The fraudulent e-mails give the appearance of legitimacy
due to the usage of pictures of the FBI Director, seal, letterhead,
and/or banners. The types of schemes utilizing the names of FBI agents,
officials, or the Director's name are typically lottery endorsements
and inheritance notifications.
Other fraudulent
schemes representing the FBI claim to be from our domestic as well as
overseas offices. The schemes cover a range from threat and extortion
e-mails, website monitoring containing malicious computer program attachments
(malware), and online auction scams.
The social engineering
technique of utilizing the FBI's name is to intimidate and convince
the recipient the e-mail is legitimate.
The FBI does not
send out e-mails soliciting personal information from citizens.
Please be cautious
of any unsolicited e-mail referencing the FBI, FBI Director Mueller,
or any other FBI official endorsing any type of Internet activity.
To receive the
latest information about cyber scams please go to the FBI website and
sign up for e-mail alerts by clicking on one of the red envelopes. If
you have received a scam e-mail please notify the IC3 by filing a complaint
at www.ic3.gov. For more information on e-scams, please visit the FBI's
New E-Scams and Warnings webpage.
