Phishing E-mail

Email users are being flooded with authentic looking e-mail messages that instruct them to provide sensitive personal information. It's called "phishing." By responding to these fradulent e-mails you can be exposed to identity theft.

ChiliTech will never ask you for personal information via e-mail!

If you already did respond, contact ChiliTech immediately so we can change your password!

You can forward any future suspicious e-mails to spoof@chilitech.net.

Phishing occurs when a consumer receives a deceptively-legitimate looking email from what appears to be a reputable company. The email asks recipients to update their, passwords, credit card information or other personal information or their account will be terminated.

Often "phishing" spam messages will use legitimate 'From:' email addresses, logos, and links to reputable businesses such as PayPal, Best Buy, Earthlink and eBay or even appear to be from ChiliTech. The message instructs you to respond to the e-mail directly with personal information or to click on a link that sends you to a fake website where you are asked to provide personal information to the scam artists. They will often ask for information such as your password, name, address, phone number, date of birth, Social Security number (SSN), and bank, or credit card account number. Providing this kind of information can leave consumers at risk for identity theft.

A few points to keep in mind:

• Don't trust e-mail headers, which can be forged easily.
• Avoid filling out forms in e-mail messages. You can't know with certainty where the data will be sent and the information can make several stops on the way to the recipient.
• If you click on a link in an e-mail message from a company be aware that many scam artists are making forgeries of company's sites that look like the real thing. Verify the legitimacy of a web address with the company directly before submitting your personal information.
• If you go to a link offered in an unsolicited e-mail, check to see if there is an 's' after the http in the address and a lock at the bottom of the screen that indicates the link is secure and encrypts data. Though this is not an indication that the site is legitimate, an online form that asks a consumer to submit sensitive personal information should always be encrypted. Scam artists are less likely to have encrypted forms, but if they are trying to elicit personal information, they may take every precaution to make consumers believe their site is secure and therefore, legitimate.

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