The Internet provides us with very useful information that is accurate most of the time, but unfortunately con artists take advantage of this and use it as an opportunity to defraud people. So perhaps you have been scammed and are asking “Where do I report email fraud to the government?”. Let’s address that question.

First let’s define what email fraud is.

Email fraud is any type of deceitful offer that proposes you to act on a illegitimate offer. Some examples are; informing you that you have won the lottery or someone is in need of your help because they have inherited millions of dollars and they will share the money with you if you help them.

There are many scams on the Internet that try and fool you into giving out your credit card details or entering you banking passwords. If you feel your personal details are at risk you should contact your bank immediately. The offers that are being put forward are very appealing and catch many people because of this.

So where do you report email fraud to the government? You can begin by contacting the Federal Trade Commission. You can contact them via telephone or via email. Send the fraudulent email that you received along with any other relevant information to spam@uce.gov. You can also file a complaint online at: ftcComplaintAssistant.gov.

A “419” or Nigerian Letter scam include both impersonation fraud and money scams. These con artists represent themselves as foreign government officials or they are the partner or child of a very wealthy official. They then offer to share millions of dollars with you if you help get the money out of the country. Send information regarding Internet money scams to the United States Secret Service via email on 419.fcd@usss.treas.gov.

Get in touch with your local police department and give them copies of all the relevant information you have.

Go to ic3.gov/default.aspx to report a scam to the Federal Bureau of Investigations. The IC3 is the Internet Crime Complaint Center which will send out information to law enforcement agencies.

Whenever you see fraudulent activity on the Internet you should report it as every time someone does so, we are getting closer to catching these con artists. Cyber crime is on the increase and you can do your part to help reduce it.

This is the sixth installment in our identity theft series. Be sure to check back for updates…

Filed under: Identity Theft

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