After emails were stolen, beware of phishing scams

by Bill Catlin, Minnesota Public Radio

St. Paul, Minn. — The Better Business Bureau of Minnesota and North Dakota is alerting consumers to an email scam the consumer protection agency says results from the recent Epsilon data breach.

Millions of email addresses were stolen from the email outsourcing company, Epsilon, in one of the largest data breaches in U.S. history.

The Bureau says it has seen emails sent from a fake "Chase Bank," one of the companies whose data was compromised.

The email warns that the recipient's account will be deactivated or deleted unless it is updated immediately using a link included in the email.

The Bureau says consumers should never reply to a suspicious email, and if the message includes a link within it, never click it. Many schemers use this as way to spread a viral attack on your computer.

The Bureau also advises consumers not to give personal or financial information to anyone who contacts you via email.

Even if they claim they are from your bank, the IRS or a law enforcement agency, these businesses will not contact you via email; they will send you a letter.

The Bureau adds that other such phishing scams may appear as a result of the Epsilon data breach.