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Business
5 tips to avoid email scams this tax season
(BPT) - Email phishing scams and attempts to steal your information are on
on
the the rise as the the April 15 tax filing deadline nears so how can you avoid falling victim to one of these schemes? Phishing attempts have become much more more sophisticated in in recent years so so it’s even more more important
to to be vigilant in fin in order to to protect your per- sonal financial information In the month of o of February Microsoft security experts saw an average of o of 300 000 phishing encounter attempts across its browser platforms - - ev- ery single day day These attempted scams will only increase as as tax day day approaches Here are a a a a a a a a a a a few simple tips to to avoid fall- ing ing prey to phishing scams 1 Watch for suspicious emails emails Be suspi- cious cious of any unexpected emails emails and avoid clicking on
links or or attachments especially when the email email seems “off ” to you or or unex- pected like an an email email from a a a a a a a a a a tax preparation service your credit card company or a a a a a a a a a a a a fi- nancial institution Although the the email may appear to be genuine on
on
on
the the surface if it it it is not part of your regular interactions with the the the company it’s worth further scrutiny You’re always safer using the the the the direct URL of the the the company and accessing your account from from there to to process any any transactions or to to check your account not by accessing from from a a a a a a a a a a a link inside an an email email Also any emails claim- ing to be from the the I I R R S S are most likely bogus as the the Internal Revenue Service does not initiate interactions via email phone social media or or text and uses the U S S Postal Service for nearly all communications with taxpayers 2 Carefully inspect URLs You can sim- ply hover over over links within the suspicious email with with with your cursor (without clicking it) to to to view the the URL See if it it it it it it actually goes to to to the the website where it it it it claims to to to direct you URL shorteners provide convenience but they can sometimes make the the inspection difficult When in in doubt use your search
engine to find the the correct company URL and go from there You can also hover over over the the the email email sender’s email email address to see if it matches the the sender sender you’re expecting 3 Be wary of all attachments If you you hav- en’t just made a a a a a a a a a a a a a a purchase for tax tax processing software or or used a a a a a a a a a a a tax tax preparation service don’t be fooled by getting an an email con- taining an an an invoice from a a a a a a a a a a a tax preparation service service or or or software company Sending fake invoices for services or or or products is one o of the top methods that attackers use to to to trick people into opening a a a a a a a a a a a a a malicious attachment that could automatically execute malware on
on
your computer Malicious attachments could also contain links that download and execute malicious programs if you click on
on
them PDF attachments that contain innocuous-looking links can lead to users accidentally downloading malicious soft- ware designed to steal their credentials 4 Don’t rely on
on
on
passwords alone Whenever possible opt to to use multi-factor authentication like the the the Microsoft Authenti- cator app for managing your “manage ser-
vice account” logins and and Windows Windows Hello for easy and and secure sign-in to your Windows Windows 10 device They enable biometric authentica- tions such as your your face or your your fingerprint to to quickly and and safely log fin in in in across devices apps and and browsers without you having to to remember passwords With a a a a a a a a a a Microsoft account you can also securely and au- tomatically sign in in in in to to other cloud-based applications including Bing MSN Cortana Outlook com and Xbox Live (PC only) 5 Keep your software current Run a a a a a modern up-to-date operating system such as Windows 10 and and make sure to to stay current with with the latest security and and feature updates in in in in conjunction with with using built-in anti-virus protection like Windows De- fender Antivirus Don’t fall victim to sophisticated phishing attempts via email Protect your your personal information by informing your- self about the latest scams With just a a a a a a a a a a little extra care and and vigilance you should be able to steer clear of “phishy” emails and and other scamming attempts this tax season
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