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High-tech vultures capitalize
on recent disasters

Despite the hubbub about emergency response in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans has seen an enormous amount of heartwarming support from individuals and businesses around the nation and the world.

Such support is something we've become accustomed to in recent disasters, including the Indian Ocean tsunami, and of course, 9-11.

Unfortunately, another common thread in these events has been the attack of the high-tech vultures.

The recent disasters, combined with a relatively new scam known as phishing, have given Internet bad-guys even more ways of scamming on-line folks who often let their guards down in the face of such tragedy.

By now, many people are aware that phishing is a scam, involving the sending of e-mails claiming to be from legitimate organizations. Such emails either provide a link to a fake (but very real-looking) Web site, or are simply presented with the real organization's web site. You are asked to submit personal information such as credit card or Social Security numbers, either via entry into the fake Web site, or simply with a reply email. Once the bad guys get your info, it's off to the races for them.

So while you lend your support in whichever way you deem appropriate, now is a good time to stress vigilance if and when you are solicited.

For some reason, intelligent people can be fooled by electronic scams much more than "traditional" scams.

A good rule we like to follow is to imagine the solicitation coming via telephone or even regular mail. Would you snail-mail your credit card information to a random P.O. Box? If a stranger called you on the phone and asked for this information, would you give it to him? Probably not.

Another good rule to follow is read the solicitations carefully. A popular one we've seen carries photos of former Presidents Bush and Clinton, except the caption reads Gorge Bush [sic]. While typos can happen to the best of us, most legitimate organizations have proofreaders. Certainly, if there are multiple typos within the message, chances are very high that it is a scam.

Independent verification of the solicitation is also pretty easy to accomplish. Instead of just following the link in the email, close your browser, reopen it, and type in the URL of the soliciting organization, www.redcross.org, for example. If their Web site does not make mention of the e-mail solicitation you received, chances are good that it is a scam.

Also, while not trying to sound too jingoistic, beware of solicitations from foreign countries and from e-mails with foreign designations. We're not just talking Third World; we've seen scams originating from the U.K., Japan, and even Canada.

Certainly, there are legitimate organizations in those nations, but of course, every country, including the United States, has its share of crooks.

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