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EMAIL SCAMS are getting smarter. While the majority are easy to spot and caught in spam filters, a number manage to slip through the cracks.
In the last few weeks alone, there have been a number of scams from people claiming to be from Meteor, Permanent TSB, Netflix, and Revenue.ie all had scams email claiming to be them.
Most of the time, your email client will pick up on whether it’s spam or not, but there will always be moments where it will make its way to your inbox. When that happens, keep these in mind.
Visual clues
The first clue comes from how it looks. Some will be obvious errors like repeated spelling mistakes, poor sentence structure or a completely different design, but a sure-fire way to spot a fake is to compare it to previous emails.
A quick search in your own email account will quickly show how different they are. For example, here is a scam email that claims to be from iTunes which looks legitimate from first glance.
And here’s the real version. While they seem similar in design, some very important details such as the sender, personal information and account details aren’t there in the scam email above.
Check the email address
For most email clients, they will include the name of the sender first and then the email after. While this is useful for friends and trusted contacts, scammers hope that you will gloss over this.
Check the URL address
Some offer you a shortened URL instead, causing many people to believe that you have to click on it to find out where it goes. Instead, there are two ways to check. The first is to hold the mouse over it and let the real address pop up.
The other, and recommended route, is to copy the link and paste it into a client like Long URL. It will check where the link leads to. Alternatively, you can pop the URL into Google search and it will tell you where it leads without compromising your security.
What are they saying and asking for?
This is important. Most scams try to send you into a panic or lull you into believing you’ve will benefit from something. Therefore, they will use emotive language to get you to react immediately.
Such emails will usually ask for personal details which would never happen in a professional context simply because most organisations will have these details already.
If you feel like your account has been compromised, it’s best to ring up the helpline of the company, or go to the main site and change details there. Unless you’re absolutely certain it’s from an official channel, don’t take the chance.
Also important is to check who it’s from. Spam emails tend to use vague terms like ‘customer service team’ as they don’t know the names of that company’s employees. Most official emails will have the name and signature of a company member if they’re sending out a warning or notice.
Don’t download attachments
A common tactic of spam emails is to provide a word document or file for you to download. Never, ever download these files unless you’re absolutely certain it’s from a reputable source – something you should apply to all emails you receive.
Check the small print (and the large)
An odd one, but something that most spam emails don’t seem to have are long disclaimers at the end. You know the ones like “this email message is confidential and for use by the addressee only” and so on.
Rarely do you see them recreate the small print, some of them just link to the official site’s privacy policy to look official instead, but a quick comparison will show them to be quite different.
Trust your gut instinct
If an email or text seems off in any way, chances are it is. Don’t take a gamble and check it out, contact the relevant group or organisation about it and mark it as spam.
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All violent prisoners should be on Spike Island…..
With a snipers in a watch tower on each corner..
Food and new prisoners dropped off every week.
Let them kill each other for all I care…….
Every government since I joined this Job has fobbed the Prison Officers with the cheapest crap they could buy. Instead of buying quality equipment that would last for years the mantra has always been get the cheapest you can and if its poor quality it is not an issue.
And I am sure the members of the Gardai will echo what I have said for their equipment.
They would rather spend ten of millions giving Junkies Disability Allowances and everything that goes with it than spend 1 or 2 million of equipment that would over time save millions.
The latest thing with us is instead of buying new good quality stab vests for each Officer they want us to take ancient Control and Restraint breastplates that have been laying in storage for 15+ years being pissed on by rats and mice that were deigned unfit for purpose when they were put away all that time ago and use them as “Stab Vests” when they offer no cover to the sides or lower abdomen or lower back.
They wont issue each Officer with their own extendible baton because they are afraid an Officer may just actually use it to defend themselves or someone else. And wont even discuss the idea of Pepper Spray which would be much less harmful in terms of injury to a prisoner than a baton would.
Lions led by Donkeys is an apt description of the Prison Officers and the Civil Servants running IPS.
Pepper spray is a no brainer. No lasting effects and drops d gouger like a rock. And shud be cheap 2 provide. Cannot understand d mentality. Do gooders have literally ruined this country and put prison officers in harm’s way just 2 be pc. Dumb!
Honest to god is this government for real ? Leave the prison officers alone. If I’m correct there basically looking to implement 9 – 7 shifts instead of 8 – 8 ? Increasing the working year by 25 days per officer at no extra cost & no need to recruit new staff. So absolutely no family life for the officers. When was the last time a jail went up in a riot type situation ??? A long time ago, officers do a unbelievable job under extreme circumstances. As usual this government attacks the average worker on the ground level.
Pepperspray does not always work. Tasers would be good option.
But really it should be a rule if you attack a prison officer you go to the underground level never to see natural light and kept in small cell 23 hours a day. Even when out of the cell it’s just in hallway till sentence ends.
Would that work mick?
Not sure if ur being sarcastic or not Charles. I’m a bit slow like that. I see d simple picture. Black and white. Prison officers r d good guys and prisoners r d bad guys. So yeah ur idea has some merit. Better than d current system.
Charles. Tazers are pie in the sky stuff. Even with the Gardai they are only issued to the ERU if I am not mistaken. On the whole Level 4 strength pepper spray and a baton as back up would be more than adequate for our current needs.
In fairness the Luas does run to Tallaght.
Many from tallaght also stay in the joy.
I’m sure there are many mothers and fathers living in tallaght who are trying to teach their children right and wrong and bring them up to be decent.
And not make stuck up snobby jibes on the Internet.
State always take cheap option. The luas guards have better stab vests then the guards
Anyone who has a stab proof vest has a better one than we in the prisons do.
Why ???
Because we don’t have ANY !!!
The 1st priority 4 govt and management shud be equipping d prison officers adequately and ensuring their safety. Only when that is fully implemented shud prisoners”rights” be taken into consideration.
The head of IPS and the Minister are from a welfare background and are only interested in positive press and have a view that any prisoner in jail is a victim and should be treated as one and not as violent criminal.
The stabbing of 2 officers last week ,was a inconvenience for them and lip service has been payed to stab vests and pepper spray.
The minister went into the lower house yesterday and tried to turn the incompetency of IPS back on officers. Shame on you minister and your mangers
Prison is a controlled environment. Do the job right and no prisoner will have a weapon.
Says someone that has most likely never set foot in a Prison let alone dealt with a violent prisoner.
Just yesterday one officer had to go to hospital after being struck in the face with a brush handle. Just because you don’t have the imagination to make weapons out of the most mundane everyday things they do. Take a tooth brush to you and most people that is all it is. To a prisoner and a Prison Officer it is a potential weapon. Shape one end to a point it becomes a stabbing weapon, Melt the bristles and insert the blades from a disposable Razor and you have a slashing weapon. A bar of soap in a sock and you have a clubbing weapon. A length of wire and two pens and you have a garrotte.
So when you actually know what you are talking about then maybe just maybe you can make statements like the one above.
I was wondering why all the prisoners like getting boots hampers for Christmas.
Luas security officers are Stazi-like. They’re checking train tickets but act like East German assassins!
It’s a no brainer,prison officers should be extremely highly trained and properly equiped and get whatever support they need at all times,the same goes for the gardai.You can be sure ministers do
In one prison I knew, the prisoners had better stab vests than the screws.
I know … my ex fella was banged up for 6 months for GBH in the prison
Oh dear.
… but it was the best thing that could happen, I met another fella, when he was inside
What!!!
You couldn’t wait 6 months?
Sounds like he’s better off without you so!
Must have been a UK prison because Irish Prison Officers don’t have stab vests.
Glen, I couldn’t go a week without it, never mind 6 months!
Mick,
yes, it was in England
Well prison officers are free to leave and apply for a job on luas security. I’m positive every luas security guard would happily swap jobs with them. Why do people with the best jobs in this country just shut up and appreciate what they have for once. If you don’t like your job you are free to leave.
thats a load of C**P John , So its ok to accept bad working conditions ??No matter where a person works they are entitled to work in a safe environment , as safe as it possibly can be . So your solution to all people who are employed and being treated unfairly is to leave their job ?? Get real would you , Prison Officers are doing a job have mortgages and bills the same as everyone else they are not “free” to leave their employment as you put it BUT they are entitled to feel somewhat protected in a dangerous workplace ,THATS ALL THEY ARE ASKING
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