Fraudulent Emails & Phishing Scams
What is It?:
Phishing and other email scams are a type of deception designed by Internet fraudsters who send spam or pop-up messages to lure personal information (credit card numbers, bank account information, Social Security number, passwords, or other sensitive information) from unsuspecting victims.
How it Works:
Phishers send emails or pop-up messages that claim to be from a business or organization that you may deal with – for example, an Internet service provider (ISP), bank, online payment service, or even a government agency. The message may ask you to "update," "validate," or "confirm" your account information. Some phishing emails threaten a dire consequence if you don't respond, like closing your account or turning off services. The messages typically direct users to a website that looks just like a legitimate organization's site. But it isn't. It's a bogus site whose sole purpose is to trick you into divulging your personal information so the operators can steal your identity and run up bills or commit crimes in your name.
How to Avoid Phishing and other Internet Fraud:
- If you get an email or pop-up message that asks for personal or financial information, do not reply. And don't click on the link in the message, either. Vonage and other legitimate companies don't ask for this information via email. If you are concerned about your account, contact the organization mentioned in the email using a telephone number you know to be genuine, or open a new Internet browser session and type in the company's correct Web address yourself. In any case, don't cut and paste the link from the message into your Internet browser – phishers can make links look like they go to one place, but that actually send you to a different site. If you receive an email from Vonage that you feel is unusual or suspicious please forward it to abuse@vonage.com.
- Don't email personal or financial information. Email is not a secure method of transmitting personal information and Vonage will never ask you to email your personal information. If you receive an email that appears to be from Vonage asking you to respond with any type of personal information please forward it to us at abuse@vonage.com.
- Be cautious about opening any attachment or downloading any files from emails you receive, regardless of who sent them. These files can contain viruses or other software that can weaken your computer's security.
- Forward any email from Vonage that you suspect is fraudulent or phishing for information to: abuse@vonage.com
