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Emails About Hurricane Katrina Charities, News May
be Scams
FTC Advises Consumers not to Reply, Click the Link,
or Paste the Link Found in Unsolicited Emails
Sept. 16,2005 - In the wake of Hurricane Katrina,
many senior citizens and other Americans are looking for news about the
hurricane or information about charities that are helping victims. The
Federal Trade Commission cautions consumers to be careful of email
messages that make these offers. A new Consumer Alert from the FTC warns
that fraud artists are sending spam trying to rip-off consumers.
After a Disaster: Spam May Scam can be found
online
click here. The alert describes two common spam emails:
> one requests donations, claiming to provide
aid to victims, when in fact, the spammers keep most or all of the
funds;
> the other offers news about the hurricane if
readers click on a link. Clicking secretly installs spyware onto the
users computer, however, giving hackers control of the computer, and
could possibly lead to identity theft.
The FTC advises consumers that they should not
reply to these unsolicited emails, click on links in the emails, or even
cut and paste the links into their own Internet browsers, as scammers
can make links look like they go one place, but actually send computer
users somewhere else. For more information from the FTC about Hurricane
Katrina, consumers can
click here.
Copies of the consumer alert are available from the
FTCs Web site by
clicking here or in pdf format by
clicking here., and also from the FTCs Consumer Response Center,
Room 130, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580. Call
toll-free: 1-877-FTC-HELP.
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