Scammers Jump On The Stimulus Bandwagon

[Peaches]

Scammers Jump on the Stimulus Bandwagon

Gregg Keizer, Computerworld

Feb 05, 2009 2:05 PM PST

Although the U.S. government's economic stimulus package hasn't even gotten out of Congress, scammers aren't waiting; they've launched multiple campaigns that tempt users into revealing personal information, a security researcher warned Thursday.

One spam-and-scam example, said Dermot Harnett, a principal researcher with Symantec Corp. , poses as a message from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) , and claims that the recipient qualifies for something called a "Stimulus Payment."

"After the last annual calculations of your fiscal activity we have determined that you are eligible to receive a Stimulus Payment," the bogus e-mail reads. The message then tells the user to download the attached document, supposedly a form that must be submitted to the IRS.

The document, in fact, is an identity stealing tool, said Harnett, that asks the user to provide personal information, much or all of it data that the actual IRS would presumably have on file.

Another stimulus-related spam campaign Harnett has monitored touts "Economic Stimulus Grants," and tempts the unwary with a link that offers fake testimonials. "I found the grant I needed and filled out the forms and sent them in and in about two weeks I received a check in my hand for $100,000," one reads.

Story PC World - http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/arti..._bandwagon.html