Attorney Warns of Scam Linked With Hurricane Gustav

The Office of Attorney General, Buddy Caldwell, claimed on August 30, 2008 that it was informed about suspicious e-mails directing online users to check their bank account details before the landfall of Hurricane Gustav, as reported by TheAdvertizer on August 31, 2008.

Security analysts said that almost 100 domains linked to Hurricane Gustav were registered in the last 2 days (August 30 & 31, 2008). Some of them are expected to be used by relief scams and fake charity after storm hits the US Golf Coast.

On August 30, 2008, the Director of the SANS Institute's Internet Storm Center (ISC), Marcus Sachs stated that several domains containing words like "hurricane", "relief" and "gustav" had been recently registered, as reported by ComputerWorld on August 31, 2008.

Sachs said that several Websites were parked domains and many of them had been put up for sale. They should be monitored closely; especially when 'donate here' mails appear.

Gary Warner, Security Expert and Director of Research in Computer Forensics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, also gave a list of parked domains that could be used for scamming, as reported by ComputerWorld on August 31, 2008.

Security experts also added that they witnessed a same kind of scam and run-up of domain registrations three years back, pre and post Hurricane Katrina hit into New Orleans.

Also, Attorney General, Caldwell, cautions users not to open or click on any suspicious mail or link or divulge any private information over internet. Banks will never ask for confirming the account details; they already have the account details, as reported by TheAdvertizer on August 31, 2008.

He also added that the residents must check their credit card and bank details as soon as they get them and they should inform their financial institution or credit card company about any unauthorized charges.

Warner also advises that users should donate only to the well-known charities like Red Cross and should avoid donating through clicking buttons, as reported by al on September 2, 2008.

Related article: Attorney Accused of Unlawfully Accessing E-Mails of County Official

» SPAMfighter News - 9/9/2008