Staff report
* Related: A message from Apple
A scammer is trying to use Apple’s iTunes to lure consumers into revealing confidential information. A North Carolina resident reported getting a “Dear Customer” email that Apple had temporarily restricted her iTunes account for security reasons. The email provided a link where she could restore full functionality by logging in to her account and verifying her identity.
The woman clicked on the link. But she stopped immediately when she saw that the web page was asking for her Social Security number and credit card account information which, as she correctly noted in her message, “Apple would never do.”
Det. Sgt. Donavan Young, of the Rockingham Police Department, made an appeal to the public to be aware of such scam attempts. He said Chief Billy Kelly learned of the issue from N.C. Attorney General Roy Cooper via email.
“If you feel like you have fallen victim to this particular scam or any other type of ‘phishing’ scam, please contact Det. Sgt. Donavan Young at the Rockingham Police Department at 910-895-2468,” he said.
This kind of email scam is called phishing. If you receive a phishing email, report it to the company the scammer is pretending to be, and forward the entire email to the Federal Trade Commission at spam@uce.gov. If you’ve fallen for a phishing email or another scam, contact us for help or call toll free within North Carolina at 1-877-5-NO-SCAM.
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