'Tis the Season…for Fake Email Greeting Cards

McAfee.com via MSN ^ | 12/24/2002 | McAfee Staff

[ex-Texan]

'Tis the Season…for Fake Email Greeting Cards

Although most e-cards are from legitimate sources, the holidays create a prime opportunity for those seeking to do harm or take advantage of our festive spirit. This is the time of year to be especially aware of fraudulent, and potentially damaging, e-greeting cards. The recent Friends Greeting Applications (I, II & III) are prime examples of this type of threat. Get complete details in the McAfee Virus Information Library.

How can you tell the good from the bad?

First, you should remember that e-cards can contain viruses, and therefore, unless you KNOW they are from a safe source, they need to be deleted immediately and without downloading. Look at who sent you the e-card and determine if this is a normal type of correspondence from that person. Then look at the source of the e-card (the company delivering the card). If they are a known, reputable source (and a quick search on the Internet will tell you who's who), then it's more than likely safe to open the card. This doesn't mean someone couldn't send a card "pretending" to be a reputable, known source and then redirect you to a malicious site. As a rule, isolating downloads and scanning for potential viruses is the best course of action.

Better yet, pick up the phone and let your friends and family hear your holiday greetings personally.

What else can you do to protect yourself?

Use email filtering software to identify and block malicious spam from reaching your inbox. Be careful, however, these e-cards often come from someone you know, and it is possible to designate certain senders as "friends", so that their email is never blocked.

Web filtering software also helps to stop the spread of these e-cards, by blocking access to the Web sites that download the e-card application onto your machine. The following Web sites should be blocked:

www.friendgreetings.com www.friendgreetings.net www.friend-greetings.com www.friend-greetings.net www.friend-greeting.com www.friend-cards.net www.friend-cards.com www.friend-card.com www.cool-downloads.net www.cool-downloads.com www.laugh-mail.com www.laugh-mail.net One more thing to keep in mind...

Just a reminder, this is also the time of year to keep a closer eye out for email hoaxes. Remember the big Elf Bowling hoax several years ago? Regularly check Tech & Gadgets' Hoax Page for the latest hoax and virus updates and keep the holidays hoax-free.

Go to the main article to review links and get additonal information ....

[Coleus]

Thanks for the heads up.

Merry Christmas

[pabianice]

Well, call me suspicious, but I hesitate to open an ecard that begins,

"Dear personal friend, We wishing you best most good Cristtmas from us all to you with season greetings, from you close friend, hoping you enjoy this my first efort of such..."