Internet Watch Foundation

Phishing is the name given to the practice of sending emails at random purporting to come from a genuine company operating on the Internet, in an attempt to trick customers of that company into disclosing information at a bogus website operated by fraudsters.

 

These emails usually claim that it is necessary to update or verify your customer account information and they urge people to click on a link from the email which takes them to the bogus website. Any information entered on the bogus website will be captured by the criminals for their own fraudulent purposes.

 

Financial institutions, such as banks and building societies and auctions sites are particulalry vulnerable to these types of activity. If you have been sent an email purporting to come from a trusted organisation, such as Ebay or your Bank, you should be aware that such companies never request you to re-input your passwords and private information. If you do receive such an email, you should contact the organisation it purports to come from to ascertain its authenticity.

 

For more information on Phishing please visit the Anti-Phishing Working Group where you can report a phishing attack.

 

Bank Safe Online also has useful information & advice on how to advice financial & banking scams on the internet.

Answer: Unless you know the person who sent you the email, you are have almost certainly received an unsolicited bulk email, also known as spam. These type of messages are designed to extract personal information for the Spamer to use fraudulently, DO NOT provide any information. Additionally, do not respond to the email and follow best practices as decribed in our FAQ on spam.