Amazon Email Phishing Scam

In the past few weeks, Amazon has been warning consumers about fake emails which appear to have been sent by Amazon but were, in fact, sent by fraudsters. Many of our 1st United members shop with Amazon so we want to be sure you know about this potential threat and the steps you can take to protect yourself.

What is the Amazon email scam?

Bogus emails with subject lines such as, “Your Amazon.com Order Cannot Be Shipped,” are circulating. These emails ask the unsuspecting consumer to click on a URL and then confirm their name, contact info and credit card information. The webpage consumers are sent to even looks like Amazon.com.

This type of email that is used to gain access to your personal information is called “phishing.”

How to protect yourself

If you receive an email from Amazon and aren’t sure if it’s legitimate, do not click on any links or attachments in the email. If the Amazon email references an order you placed, double check that the order number in the email matches the order number in your Amazon.com account. If it doesn’t match or you didn’t place an order, the email isn’t from Amazon. If you aren’t sure, call Amazon at (888) 280-4331.

This is good practice for any email you receive – always scrutinize the legitimacy of an email that’s asks for your personal information. Fraudsters are tricky and sometimes it’s hard to tell.

Additionally, you should never provide account numbers, Social Security numbers or any personal information to strangers. If you are not sure who is contacting you, don’t give out your information.

The Consumer Protection Bureau recommends you file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission. If you think you’ve given your account information to a criminal, you will want to contact your local police department and call us immediately at (800) 649-0193 if one of those accounts is your 1st United account.

A little common sense and double checking who you give your information to will go a long way to protecting your accounts and your information. Stay safe and use caution.