Smart phones are a tool for everyday communication, but since the device is capable of all kinds of additional tasks, it's no surprise scammers are trying to utilize popular apps and email accounts at the same time.
Dottie Callina with the Better Business Bureau office in Atlanta said the latest email phishing scam directly targets Apple iTunes account holders.
"If you received an email from 'Apple'... telling you about a recent purchase associated with your Apple ID, you may have been the target of this latest scam," said Callina.
The scam is basically an email phishing scam, in that it tries to get the victim to reveal sensitive information by tricking them into thinking it's for something else.
Callina said these emails have some details that will reveal it is a fake and not from Apple at all.
"Con artists are sending fake emails, impersonating Apple support, and they attach a document to the email, asking consumers to cancel a purchase. So right there, that's the first red flag, if you know that you have not made a purchase whatsoever, then you should not be asked to cancel a purchase," said Callina. "The second red flag is they're going to ask for sensitive information, in hopes of stealing money from you."
Callina said it's important to check the email address and verify the sender is legitimate. "It's sent with a fake Apple email address. So if you see anything coming from a major company that may have a gMail address, or something that doesn't look right, that's another red flag."
As for the aforementioned attached document, Callina said be sure not to open the attachment.
"Never, never, never open an attachment from an unknown company. And if you think that it's real, before you even click on the attachment, hover over it (with your cursor) to see if it gives you any type of URL," said Callina.
If you're still in doubt, call Apple Support to make sure. Callina encourages those in doubt to find contact information from the company directly, and not to use any phone numbers or emails in the potentiall fake email.
When you know it's a scam email, forward it to Apple's fraud account [email protected] and report it to the Better Business Bureau Scam Tracker.
"If anyone has any question about any type of offer, you can email us at [email protected], that's the quickest way to get a response. Don't click on anything until you have an answer either way, from BBB or from the company itself. And if it looks like it's just too good to be true, delete, delete, delete."
