Hello everyone!  I'm Heather DeMarco at the business desk and on the eve of our Thanksgiving holiday I'd like to remind you to keep a very watchful eye on your incoming emails because it is at this time that those murky scammers and identity thieves deliberately choose to pounce on poor and unsuspecting victims.  Many of these believe that they can do anything they feel, anything that they want, and that we are powerless to stand up to them.  Wrong!  There's something that we can do and that is to be aware of their presence and to take note of some of the more common types of emails that they are sending.

We need to keep in mind that scammers and identity thieves have absolutely no respect for anyone and that for the most part their notes are very convincing.  So convincing that if you allow yourself to read the first sentence you could find yourself being easily sucked in. These cyber thugs work on a 7 24 basis 365 days a year, and in short round the clock.  They have no respect for time and by this I mean that they don't take any time off.  They work during and over the Christmas holidays, during and over the Thanksgiving holiday, and always.  They're getting better and smarter at composing their notes and they are using some very enticing tactics to try and get you to fall into their traps.

So, what types of notes should you be looking out for?  I'm going to try and give you examples of some of the more common types of emails making the rounds these days and hopefully it will help you to be more aware.

The loan approval email -  This one has been making the rounds for about a month now and has gotten very common.  In this email the sender congratulates you on your loan application and invites you to provide some additional personal information and even goes as far as to ask you to verify some of your banking details.  Don't touch this email.  Don't even think of it.  Delete it and move on.

The stocks tips  email -  This email is becoming more and more common and the senders of these types of emails are attempting to get you to invest in bogus companies.  They provide very convincing info on bogus companies and ask you to either email your interest back to them or phone them.  Leave this one alone.  Don't even think about it.  These seemingly sound investments are nothing but empty promises that will only cause you to lose the shirts off your back.

Selling mail order products emails -  These types of notes usually swell in number at holiday time and they are nothing but scams.  The senders of these notes advertise too good to be true products and ask you to order them using your credit card and they promise instant delivery.  In truth, they are looking for you to innocently provide your credit card number and then they use your card number to cause devastating grief.  There is no product for sale.  If you get such an email just delete it and think no more about it.

Of course there are many other types of dubious notes floating around but I chose these three examples to get you started.  Please, pay close attention to your emails, but most of all keep an eye on your youngsters to ensure that they don't go ordering stuff that could potentially bring tears and fears to your household. 

I urge you to travel safely today.  If you're driving then be extra careful and use patience and caution where necessary. 

Happy Thanksgiving.

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