Be advised that numerous Nova Scotia lawyers and/or their staff continue to receive the following type of “spoofing” email scam attempt (emails that falsely appear to be sent from an individual’s email account). This scenario involves a lawyer or staff person receiving an email that appears to be from a colleague who is out of the office, and is requesting assistance in making a payment or wire transfer to a domestic or international financial institution, or to make a purchase of, for example, gift cards. The colleague’s name typically appears in the “From:” line of the email, which leads the person in the office to falsely believe they are communicating with their colleague. One version of the message is as follows:
[Employee name],
Please let me know if you’re available to process a Bank Transfer or E-Transfer, because i’ll be very busy today(this is an outgoing payment). And also, what is the information you need to process it?
Thanks,
[Lawyer name]
Sent from my iPhone
If you or your staff receive or have received a similar email, change your email passwords immediately in order to reduce the risk of being “spoofed” again. These emails will be looking to either transfer money directly from one account to another, or to intercept and obtain sensitive banking information that can be used to steal money from your accounts.
If you receive an unusual unsolicited email that appears to be from someone you know, confirm their request by forwarding the email and your query to their address (not by directly replying to the email in question).
For tips to avoid being victimized, read a list of “Red Flags”, and visit the Fraud section on lians.ca. To report or seek advice on dealing with fraud and scam attempts, contact Cynthia Nield at [email protected] or 902 423 1300, x346.