Phishing Attacks Are Imitating City & County Officials: FBI Alerted! | PhishNext
An alert warning has been released by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on a phishing effort that poses as county and local officials in order to send false requests for permit fees.
FBI
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“Criminals posing as county and local planning and zoning board officials are targeting people and companies that have ongoing applications for land-use permits, fraudulently seeking fees related to these permits.”
“Unsolicited emails with their permit details, zoning application numbers, and/or property addresses are sent to victims. Victims are instructed to use wire transfers, peer-to-peer payments, or cryptocurrency to settle invoices for permit-related expenses.” |
Notably, the attacks may be timed to align with ongoing contacts regarding the approval process and are meticulously constructed using actual data about the targeted sites.
Advisory
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“The emails provide accurate and comprehensive information regarding zoning and planning requests, including case numbers, property addresses, and the real names of county and city authorities.”
“For planning and zoning applications, including review procedures, planning commission procedures, regulatory compliance, and pertinent ordinances, the emails employ formal language, formatting, and imagery that are consistent with official government communications.” |
To assist users in avoiding falling for these attacks, the Bureau provides the following guidance:
● Emails with official names, city or county letterhead, seals, or correct spelling and language should not be taken at face value.
● Make sure that the email address, including the domain name, does not contain any additional characters or misspellings and matches the email address of the authority you are interacting with.
● For information regarding active impersonation schemes, visit the official website of the county or city.
● To confirm unpaid fines, give the city or county administration a call at the number provided on the official website.
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Note: To get a stress-free working environment, you can go for a specially designed tool, “PhishNext,” which provides specialized simulations of phishing attacks so that users can get used to such attacks and never become victims of such attacks. |
