This is just a reminder to all that texting and phishing email scams are happening on a regular basis in the Diocese of Portland. On occasion, texts or emails claiming to come from the bishop, priests, or other staff members are received but are not actually from them. Their phones or email have not been hacked, however, scammers have created accounts with fraudulent information, so that it appears to be coming from a known recipient. Typically, these are coming from @gmail.com addresses. These phishing emails are attempts by scammers to trick you into giving out personal information such as your bank account numbers, passwords, credit card numbers, or to purchase gift cards. Never follow links, open attachments, or reply to suspicious or unsolicited messages.
These signs can help you identify phishing scams:
The sender’s email address or phone number doesn’t match the name of the company that it claims to be from;
The message starts with a generic greeting, like “Dear customer.”
A link appears to be legitimate but takes you to a website whose URL doesn’t match the address of the company’s website.
The message looks significantly different from other messages that you’ve received from the company/person.
The message requests personal information like a credit card number, gift card purchases, or account password.
The message is unsolicited and contains an attachment.
What to do:
DO NOT send any personal information over email such as your bank or credit card accounts/passwords/login information, etc.
You may verify the sender's address by hovering over the name or clicking the email details in the “From:” column to see the email address. A valid email from Father or staff will always send emails from an @portlanddiocese.org address.
If an email seems suspicious or questionable, delete it or call the person or parish that sent the email to verify that they sent it.
In general, never click links from unsolicited emails or open attachments. The links and attachments are a common phishing tactic, being malicious and can contain viruses and malware. Malware can damage files on your computer, steal your passwords or spy on you without your knowledge. Don’t open any email attachments you weren’t expecting.
Be skeptical when it comes to your text and email messages. If it looks even remotely suspicious, don’t open it.
This is just a reminder to all that texting and phishing email scams are happening on a regular basis in the Diocese of Portland. On occasion, texts or emails claiming to come from the bishop, priests, or other staff members are received but are not actually from them. Their phones or email have not been hacked, however, scammers have created accounts with fraudulent information, so that it appears to be coming from a known recipient. Typically, these are coming from @gmail.com addresses. These phishing emails are attempts by scammers to trick you into giving out personal information such as your bank account numbers, passwords, credit card numbers, or to purchase gift cards. Never follow links, open attachments, or reply to suspicious or unsolicited messages.