Email Safety

Avoid being reeled in by email "phishing" scams

Fraudulent "Phishing" expeditions reel in millions of people each day with communications designed to trick them into divulging personal, financial or account information. Phishing scams can snag the personal data that define an individual’s financial existence in today's world. This critical identity data includes account and credit card information and personal information. Unlawful appropriation of this material by Phishing scams constitutes what is known as identity theft. These bogus emails often create a false sense of urgency designed to provoke consumers to take immediate action. For example, phishing emails will often instruct you to "validate" or "update" account information or face cancellation of your account.

Reporting suspicious emails

If you feel you have received an email of a phishing nature that appears to be from Misco or sent on behalf of Misco, do not respond or give any personal details. Before you delete the email please forward the email to us at this address phishing@misco.co.uk so we can analyse the content of it.

Example of Fraudulent Email

Click image to enlarge

Privacy Statement

For details on our email practices, please visit the misco.co.uk Privacy Statement.

We protect your privacy and personal information

misco.co.uk take your privacy very seriously. Should our name be used in efforts to fraudulently obtain personal information, we will work aggressively to halt those operations. In addition, it is important to know that we never send emails requesting customers to reply in the body of an email with personal information, such as password, National Insurance number, account numbers, mother's maiden name, etc. Please view our Privacy Policy.

Overview – What is "Phishing"?

Phishing (pronounced "fishing") refers to deceptive communications designed to trick consumers into revealing personal, financial or account information, including account user name and password, credit card information, and National Insurance number. Email is most commonly used for phishing due to its low cost, greater anonymity for the sender, the ability to reach a large target group instantly, and the potential to solicit an immediate response. However, fraudsters have also used online pop-up windows, direct mail and phone calls. Phishing emails often appear to come from legitimate financial institutions, insurance companies or retailers. Techniques such as a false "from" address, the use of seemingly authentic logos from financial institutions, or web links and graphics may be used to mislead consumers into believing that they are dealing with a legitimate request for personal information. These fraudulent emails often create a false sense of urgency intended to provoke the recipient to take immediate action; for example, phishing emails frequently instruct recipients to "validate" or "update" account information or face cancellation.

How you can also take the initiative to protect your vital info

Criminal phishers often create a sense of urgency to provoke you to take action immediately. There is no need to respond instantly to an email request. First, consider carefully whether the business in question would have sent you the request. If you are in doubt as to whether or not an email is legitimate, do not respond to it. If the questionable email offers a link asking you to provide personal information on a web page, do not click on the link, even if it looks genuine. In any cases of uncertainty, a safe alternative is to contact the company in question directly through familiar communications channels, such as the customer service telephone number provided on a billing statement or credit card.

It is very likely that phishing will continue to evolve, using more sophisticated tactics. For this reason, always think twice before you provide any personal information.

How thieves snatch your identity

Like grave robbers skulking around in the dark, criminals creep about in the ether world of cyberspace to snatch what's near and dear to you. Identity theft occurs when someone uses your name or personal information, such as your National Insurance number, driving license number, credit card number, telephone number or other account numbers, without your permission. Identity thieves use this information to open credit accounts, bank accounts, telephone service/mobile phone accounts, and make major purchases—all in your name. Information can be used to take over your existing accounts, or to open new accounts. Identity theft can result in damage to your credit rating and denials of credit and job offers. Worse still, it can literally destroy your life. You can go to sleep one night with a full line of credit and no debt and wake up in the morning to find out you’re in a hole so big you might not be able to climb out of it.

How does identity theft happen?

Following are two examples of how identity theft can occur. These are many ways in which you can lose pieces of your identity to thieves, but we’ve selected two very common scam scenarios.

Dustbin diving

It sounds almost like some sort of strange Olympic event, but "dustbin diving" is serious business for many thieves lurking in your street, waiting for an opportunity to rip you off. Here's how "dustbin divers" operate:

Imagine one evening you sit down to watch TV. At the advert break you decide it's time to pay a few bills. So you write your cheques, throw away what you don't need and go back to late night TV. You toss the paper into the bin and pop it out ready for the dustbin men to remove it the following morning. However, whilst you sleep, a shadowy presence hides behind the bushes, waiting for the opportunity to rifle through your rubbish. These nasty "dustbin divers" go through your rubbish looking for the personal information you’ve thrown away. They can discover a gold mine of information that can be used for fraudulent purposes - your name, address, phone number, utility service account numbers, credit card numbers, and your National Insurance number.

Information highway robbery

Your Internet Provider (ISP) sends you an urgent message requesting that you update the information they have on file about you—your name, credit card number, bank account number, etc.—by replying to the email or going to a specific Web site address to provide the information. For all appearances, the email looks legitimate. The logos and graphic design of the attachment looks genuine, giving you a sense of security. You can trust these folks. However, neither the message nor the Web site address is from your ISP. They belong to a criminal who’s out to snatch your information to steal your identity.

Preserve your identity

Don't let criminals steel your identity! You've worked hard for your money, and you don’t have to fall prey to the criminals who work equally hard to steal what you’ve earned.

The following rules offer guidelines you should follow to protect your vital financial and personal information against "phishers" who are trying to steal your identity.

• Do not give out your National Insurance number to people or companies that you don't know. Before disclosing any personal information, make sure you know why it is required and how it will be used. Make sure, to the best of your ability, that the entity who asks for this information is legitimate.
• Do not carry extra credit cards, your birth certificate or passport, or other cards that display your NI number in your wallet or purse, except when necessary.
• Shred information you no longer need that contains personally identifiable information and account numbers. For example, credit card receipts, billing statements and pre-approved credit offers should be shredded before you discard them.
• Keep the personal information you have at home and at work in a safe place.
• Create unique passwords and personal identification numbers (PINS) and avoid using easily available information such as mother's maiden name, date of birth, or the last four digits of your NI number. Use passwords on your bank accounts.
• Get a copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit-reporting agencies at least once a year. Review the reports to be sure no one else is using your identity to open new accounts or to use your existing accounts.