10.16.08
Beware, Title Companies, of Fake email regarding Wired Funds
Beware, title insurers who handle wired funds on a daily basis. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has put out an FDIC alert to consumers that handle large sums of money, saying that FDIC has received numerous reports of a fraudulent e-mail that has the appearance of being sent from the FDIC.
The subject line of the e-mail states: “Funds wired into your account are stolen.” The e-mail tells recipients that the proceeds of identity theft crimes have been wire-transferred into their bank account. The e-mail then directs recipients to open and review an attached copy of their bank account statement. to confirm. The attached file is actually an unknown executable file and is likely a malicious attempt to collect personal or confidential information, some of which may be used to gain unauthorized access to on-line banking services or to conduct identity theft.
The FDIC does not issue unsolicited e-mails to consumers. Financial institutions and consumers should NOT open the executable file attached to the fraudulent e-mail.