The Amazon email scams come in many different flavors. Most scammers will customize their emails a bit, but many are identical. Here are four different fake emails, all using Amazon.com as the lure. Let’s begin with the Amazon survey scam, which looks something like this.
You have been selected to take part in improving our customer service for 2015. After you complete our 30 second questionnaire as a way to say “Thank You”, you’ll receive an exclusive reward worth over $50.
The reality is, there’s no Amazon customer service survey, no meaningful feedback will be provided to Amazon, and the only reward you’ll receive is a virus, malware, or having your identity stolen. In this case, the reward mentioned is not an Amazon gift card, but that’s also used frequently. Here’s an example.
Recent Visitors – Your amazon.com $100 – eGift (Ending soon)
Two Simple Steps
- Take (1) minute to answer 3 simple questions.
- Select your reward and activate your card.
There were three links in this email. Two went back to Amazon.com, the third went to a site owned by Victor Valenzuela from Daleville, AL. Before you start thinking that Victor might be running a legitimate company in good old Daleville, you should know that the website itself is hosted on a server located in Bulgaria. Yeah, that Bulgaria. The one right between Serbia and the Black Sea.
Another popular spam email is the one claiming your account has been locked. It will look something like the following.
We recently received multiple failed login attempts to your account. As a result, access to your account has been temporarily locked.
To unlock your account access, click: Sign In to My Amazon Account and proceed with the verification process.
Last, but not least, is the appeal to the old entrepreneurial spirit. It begins with lines like “Stop putting money in someone else’s pocket!” The email will include calls to action such as “Be your own boss.” Make no mistake, the only entrepreneurial spirit with these emails is their malicious intent.
My last Sunday Scam Tip was 5 tips to spot a bogus email. Use the link to view the post or, for those who are in a hurry, here are the highlights:
- Check to see who really sent the email
- Does the Reply To address match the sender’s address
- What does the content preview show?
- Scan the content for errors
- Look for really stupid mistakes
How can I stop the gift card scam that pops up Everytime I visit a site. I have a att tablet that I am not happy with.
Sounds like cookies on the tablet are being used to track your activity. Try doing a search for “ATT tablet cookies” and see if you can turn them off.
Trial flashlight $4.95 charged $49.95 4flashlights who needs four flashlights
gifteena.com how doI get out of ship men charege
You can try contacting the company, but that may not do a lot of good. If the company refuses to do anything and you paid by credit card, you can dispute the charges and may have some luck there. But, once you’ve placed the order and paid for it, you’re really at a disadvantage.
thx for the heads up. i just cant it off my phone. heip james
Terry, thanks for the Amazon link, I used it yesterday.
YES, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE INFORMATION. THE OLD SAYING IF ITS TO GOOD TO BE TRUE IT ISN’T STILL APPLIES.
Yes. And these scams, along with the “millions” being held in ______ (fill in the blank) which only requires that I wire $_____ to _____ (a couple more fill-in the blank) so that these funds can be transferred to my bank. I just delete them. It’s nonsense at the outset…usually filled with improper syntax, bad grammar, and the like….
You’re right, Charles, these are nonsense. Unfortunately, many people get caught by inattention and a lot still suffer from the “what if it’s true” mentality. Then, there’s the problem of the spam getting better and better. That’s what worries me. The newbies who are just getting started are easy to ferret out, it’s the ones who have been around a while and no longer make those beginner mistakes that are the real problem. Thanks for the comment!
Thank you Terry, I did not know that, I will definitely forward these email to amazon.
I get these emails frequently and I am just sick and tired of getting them. Is there someone we can forward them to, to report this abuse. I think it is a form of stalking.
Hi Marjorie, I agree that these are major pain. Unfortunately, they come from all over the world and there’s not much you can do for most. However, when they’re tied to a specific organization such as Amazon, the company may be trying to eliminate the source. For instance, Amazon has a way to report these emails. Their procedures are at http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_left_v4_sib?ie=UTF8&nodeId=201127830. Some companies have similar reporting systems in place, so one way to check is to search online for the company name followed by “email abuse”.