BreakTheChain.org
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Bogus Best Buy NoticeDate Added: June 21, 2003
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck... It must be a duck. The same applies to online scams. No reputable company will contact you via e-mail to confirm your credit information. Anybody claiming to do so is just trying to rip you off. Dear customer, Recently we have received an order made by using your personal credit card information. This order was made online at our official BestBuy website on 06/19/2003. Our Fraud Department has some suspicions regarding this order and we need you to visit a special Fraud Department page at our web store where you can confirm or decline this transaction by providing us with the correct information. Your e-mail address has been taken from National Credit Bureau. Click the link below to visit a special Fraud Department page to resolve the cause of the problem. BestBuy.com/fraud_department.html ------------------------------------------------------
- UNVERIFIED SHIPPING ADDRESS - Information provided:
In our effort to deter fraudulent transactions, we need your help in providing us with the correct information. Your prompt response is needed to avoid any unauthorized charges to your credit card.
While the Internet and e-mail have made doing business easier than ever, they have also paved the way for new scams to bilk good people out of their hard-earned money. The letter above is just one of several similar scams that use look-alike web sites to fool unsuspecting consumers into giving up valuable information. The link in the message above points to a non-existent page on the BestBuy.com server, but originally led you to a BestBuy.com look-alike site where you were expected to enter your name credit card number and expiration date - the three elements required to make a purchase online. The letter above claims the electronics retailer got your e-mail address from "the National Credit Bureau," but no such organization exists, and the four legitimate credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, Innovis and Trans-Union) do not collect - let alone distribute - such information. The bottom line: No reputable company will contact you via e-mail in order to confirm your credit card information, nor should you ever provide this information in any context other than making a purchase from a retailer you trust through a secured web site. If it feels like a scam, treat it like one. Break this chain. References: Snopes.com |