You've been spoofed . . .

For all you non-techie types like me – let me introduce spoofing. Ever get a spam with your return domain name as the sender? It’s a way for the sender to hide their identity – this is “spoofing.”

(spoof´ing) (n.) Spoofing may occur in different forms, but all have a similar result: a user receives email that appears to have originated from one source when it actually was sent from another source. Email spoofing is often an attempt to trick the user into making a damaging statement or releasing sensitive information (such as passwords) – see entry on phishing 12/29.

If the source seems questionable – such as Citibank telling you they lost your account information (trust me, they haven’t) – call the reported sender before giving any personal info.

For additional info – visit http://www.cert.org/tech_tips/email_spoofing.html.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Preventing spam and phishing using e-mail authentication (windowsteamblog.com)
• Facebook Phishing Scam Snares Company Board Member (cbsnews.com)
• Prevent Your Paypal And Ebay Account From Phishing Attacks On Gmail- Email Filter (geniusgeeks.com)

Related posts:

1. Who can you trust?