Hello Everyone,
Evelyn here,
with a comsumer alert from the office of the Attonery General, Bill McCollum.
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McCOLLUM: VALENTINE’S DAY EMAILS COULD BE DANGEROUS HOAX
Malicious computer viruses could be attached to Valentine emails from
“secret admirers,” other “romantic” sources
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum today issued a
consumer advisory warning Floridians to be cautious of Valentine’s Day
emails from unknown senders. Recent reports from the Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI) and other computer security sources have indicated
that malicious computer programs could be attached to the emails
ostensibly sent by “secret admirers” or other supposedly romantic sources.
Once downloaded, the malicious programs could not only disable or damage
computer systems, but can also forward itself to any email contact
addresses in the recipient’s computer.
“Unfortunately, cybercriminals attempt to take advantage of
unsuspecting citizens when they could be most vulnerable,” said Attorney
General McCollum. “On a day when we celebrate love, these emails could in
fact be very damaging.”
Subject lines such as “Sweetest Things Aren’t Things!,” “Valentine’s
Day,” “The Love Train,” and other similar subject lines, including "I
Love You,” “Rockin' Valentine,” “You Stay in My Heart,” “My Heart For
You,” and “Thinking of U All Day” have been identified as potentially
damaging emails. The email text may look like a romantic greeting card
with a link to a website or an attached file. Another version may direct
the recipient to click on a link to retrieve the electronic greeting card
(e-card), thus enabling the malicious program to download.
According to the FBI, clicking on the link downloads malicious
software to the internet-connected device. This infects the computer and
could link it to a network of compromised machines under the control of a
single user which can then facilitate criminal activity such as spam
e-mail, identity theft, denial of service attacks and spreading malicious
software to other machines on the internet.
The Attorney General advised Floridians to be wary of any e-mail
received from an unknown sender and urged them not to open any unsolicited
e-mail or click on any links provided. The Attorney General’s Office
offered the following tips to avoid the damaging emails:
- Unexpected or unidentified emails should be suspected of spam or
viruses.
- Look for poor grammar or misspellings in the subject line or text of
the email message.
- Be cautious of emails you know you wouldn’t likely receive from the
supposed sender.
- Suspicious emails received in work email accounts should be deleted
unopened or sent to your company’s Information Technology Department for
their review.
Last year, authorities reported that viruses capitalized on various
holidays by sending millions of e-mails advertising an e-card link within
the text of the spam e-mail.
A graphic of an example of the potentially dangerous email is
attached below. An advisory from the Office of Information Security,
Agency for Enterprise Information Technology is available at:
http://myfloridalegal.com/webfiles.nsf/WF/JFAO-7BTKEC/$file/florida_computer.wmv
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