Most seniors have email accounts, but aren’t  too hi tech, otherwise.  When they get an email from their bank, Pay Pal, or credit card provider, they perk up.  Especially when the email warns them that A) their bank account is locked or B) someone from Zimbabwae is hacking into their account.  Fear takes over.  Consequently, when they’re asked to provide passwords to straighten everything out,  they’re tempted.   The email looks legitimate; it’s  logo and format looks exactly like  other emails from financial institutions.   Warning!   spoofers target seniors.

My husband and I use one email address for all of our financial transactions.  Last week, we got an email from his bank. The logo and format was identical to the routine emails we receive from Fifth Third.   It had been posted at 5 o’clock in the morning, and said he had been locked out of his account.  All he needed to do was provide his pin and password, and he could get back in.

When we first get out of bed, we’re often a bit groggy.  We didn’t quite understand what was going on.  I lifted my fingers and started to key in the required information.  Then I took a few sips of coffee, and my head began to clear. We didn’t need any cash, so why hurry? Two more sips. “ I  think you’d better stop by your bank, “ I said. It was a cold and snowy day, but he had a scheduled haircut, so it wasn’t a big deal.

Turns out, he was the fifth person who’d reported receiving one of these e mails that day.  Even one of the bank employees received one.  You’d think the phisher or spoofer would be smarter than that.  And yes, it was a fake.  If we had provided the requested information, someone could have cleaned out his account, and there wouldn’t have been much we could do about it.

That was a bit unnerving, but we hoped it was the end of the fake emails.  But it wasn’t.  Yesterday, I got one (supposedly) from Pay Pal saying they were concerned about my account  because someone from Zimbabwe was trying to use it.  I clicked on one of the links, and they asked me to provide my pin and password.  This time, I knew what was happening.  It’s hard to speak with a real person at Pay Pal, but I finally managed to find a viable phone number.  They said the email was a fake, and asked me to forward it to their “spoof” address.   They also suggested I change my email address.

This is a warning to all seniors.  Always call before providing pins and passwords in response to e-mails from financial institutions