DoJ alerts US citizens to spam attack

Pesky phishers impersonate keepers of Justice

By Kelly Fiveash • Get more from this author

Posted in Spam, 29th June 2007 13:48 GMT

The US Department of Justice has issued a warning to the public urging them not to respond to a bogus email that purports to be from the DoJ.

In a statement on its website, the DoJ said it learned of the email after several complaints from worried citizens who had been apparently targeted by the hoax, which could lead to a possible phishing attack.

It said that the fraudulent spam mail has the subject field of "Dear Citizen".

The DoJ added that the messages may refer to claims that the recipients or their businesses have been the subject of complaints filed with the US Internal Revenues Service.

A DoJ logo may also be present either in the body of the email or as an attachment. Recipents are advised not to open the message nor download any attachments that may come with it.

"These spam email messages are bogus and should be immediately deleted," said the DoJ.

It said that anyone wishing to make a complaint about the email should do so via the Internet Crime Complaint website. ®

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