LITTLE ROCK — Last week I told you about a common Internet scam involving the hijacking of an e-mail address.
Using the address belonging to a cousin of mine in Georgia, the wouldbe hijacker claimed to be that person and asked me for $2,000 to help “her” get off of the island of Cyprus, a highly unlikely place for my cousin to be visiting.
Of course, I didn’t bite. Observing Rule 1 of suspected Internet scams, I didn’t even answer the e-mail. However, I did wait for the next shoe to drop, so to speak, the one that would confirm that this was a scam. It came the next day: a change of address.
Many times when an e-mail address (and with it the owner’s e-mail address book) is stolen by someone trolling the Internet for the purpose of making a few fast bucks, the first entreaty for financial aid is followed by a second e-mail carrying a new e-mail address noting that the old e-mail address has been changed to this new one. It’s a way to divert all people in the original address book to the new account for who knows what nefarious purposes. At the very least, the scammer may be hoping to hijack your address book, too.
Let me repeat last week’s warning: Never, never, never respond to an email requesting money, no matter who you think sent it. Don’t even reply to it. Whoever’s on the other end may just want some money, but he may be angling for much more—personal information that will allow him to tap into your financial resources and/or your e-mail address book.
As I’ve pointed out, if someone you know really is in trouble abroad, chances are you’ll learn about it from a better source in very short order. In a pinch, you can always contact the State Department here or the American Embassy or consulate in the appropriate country for solid information. You also might want to put in a call to the person who allegedly sent the e-mail. He or she might just answer the phone and confirm that the e-mail was not legitimate.
If this warning come too late, contact the Internet Crime Complaint Center, or IC3, a government program run under the auspices of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the National White Collar Crime Center and the Bureau of Justice Assistance.
IC3 accepts online Internet crime complaints from either the person who believes he was defrauded or from a third party on behalf of the complainant. For more information, whether you believe you’ve been victimized or just want to know how to protect yourself against it, check out the ic3.gov website.
NWA seminar A timely note for my fellow family researchers in Northwest Arkansas: The Northwest Arkansas Genealogical Society is sponsoring a free seminar on Irish and Scots-Irish genealogy from 3 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 12, at the Bentonville Library.
Although there’s no charge, there is room for only 125 people, so you might want to pre-register. You can do that through this Friday, Oct. 1, by e-mailing nags2@juno.com or by phoning 479-271-6820 and leaving a message. (Sorry, I intended to mention this while there was still time to send a letter, but it might be too late now If you want to take a chance, e address is NAGS c/o e Library, 405 S. Main St., e AR 72712.)
minar is being staged by Ulster Historical Foundation of Belfast, which I’m told tours America every year for that very purpose. Since 1980, representatives have staged seminars in 36 states. For more information on the foundation, check out its website at ancestryireland.com.
Since I have to work that day, I won’t be able to attend, but if someone in the reading audience does attend, I’d appreciate it if they’d inquire of any resources for the surname Lockeby. I’m pretty sure it’s Scottish, but the closest I’ve been able to come is Lockerby, and that’s produced no information of any consequence. My paternal grandmother was a Lockeby whose forebears are said to have been Scottish.
Associate Editor Meredith Oakley is editor of the Voices page.
Editorial, Pages 19 on 09/29/2010