Black Hills Energy Impersonation Scam:

If you receive a call from Black Hilly Energy saying your bill is delinquent and your service will be disconnected, Black Hills Energy wants you to know this is a scam. The company is not making any such calls. Black Hills Energy asks that you call 888-890-5554 to report scam calls. (Reported in multiple Wyoming news sources.)

Package Delivery Scams:

• Parcel Worldwide:

A Laramie citizen reported an email from a Japanese email address (ended with .jp) but spoofed as Parcel Worldwide saying it was “Not possible to make delivery.” The citizen said the email came in on a Sunday (2/6) but the email had a 2/7 date on it, a big clue that this came from a very different time zone. CyberWyoming Note: We checked the link in the email and it leads to a Chinese hosting center, so this scam is trying to use a Japanese email address to gain legitimacy.

• Express Courier:

A very similar email as the Parcel Worldwide email was also reported by a Laramie citizen and this email had a Russian email address (.ru).

Tom Crist Scam Seems to be on a Monthly Schedule:

The 1/7/22 Hacker’s Brief reported a phishing email saying you need to contact Tom Crist to claim you charitable donation. This scam seems to be on a monthly schedule because it was reported on 2/6/22 by a Laramie citizen.

Geek Squad Impersonation:

If you receive an email from Geek Squad, check the sender’s address closely. A Laramie citizen reported an email from info@geek-squadservices180.co (which is not the real Geek Squad email address) that is a renewal of services with the well-known service group. CyberWyoming Note: This scam may also be on a calendar because it was also reported in early January.

LinkedIn Impersonation Begins:

A couple of months ago LinkedIn was ‘scraped’ meaning a program was created to capture information from the LinkedIn platform. Millions of users were affected. A Laramie citizen reported an email that could very well be related to this ‘scrape’. The email was branded with LinkedIn colors and logos and saying “You appeared in searches this week,” including a well-known company, and a button to “See all searches.” If you look closely, the email is actually from doreen_brownian@202721.fornex.cloud and not LinkedIn.

Beware of IRS Impersonation Scams:

The IRS wants you to know that if you receive a suspicious email claiming to be the IRS, send it to phishing@irs.gov. The IRS doesn't initiate contact with taxpayers by email, text messages or social media channels to request personal or financial information.

Tax Time Fraud:

The IRS wants you to know as you are working on your tax records that they have a Tax Exempt Organization Search tool to help you navigate your charitable donations. If the organization doesn’t appear in the search tool, then it isn’t tax deductible. irs.gov/charities-non-profits/tax-exempt-organization-search CyberWyoming Note: This is also a great tool to validate an organization before you donate.

Microsoft warning:

The tech giant is warning of new attempts to install malicious software on computers using the firm's Office 365 suite. Victims receive an email seeming to come from Microsoft with an app attachment labeled "Upgrade." Installing this enables crooks to read and write emails in a victim's name as well as the ability to read other files. Microsoft doesn't send notifications like this, so don't install. Brought to you by Scambusters.org.

Social Media Scam Alert:

In 2021, more than 95,000 people told the FTC they had been scammed with a fake post, ad, or message on social media. The top categories are investment (usually cryptocurrency), romance (usually on Facebook and Instagram), and shopping (be sure to check out the company before you buy and only buy from a legitimate source).

MS-ISAC Patch Now Alert:

The Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) has published a patch now (update your software) alert for Cisco products, Google’s Chrome Browser, and Samba (used for Linux and Unix) products. If you use these products, make sure the software (or firmware) is updated.

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Please report scams you may experience to phishing@cyberwyoming.org to alert your friends and neighbors.

Other ways to report a scam:

• Better Business Bureau Scam Tracker: bbb.org/scamtracker/us/reportscam
• Wyoming Attorney General’s Office, Consumer Protection 307-777-6397, 800-438-5799 or ag.consumer@wyo.gov
• File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission at ftccomplaintassistant.gov
• Report your scam to the FBI at www.ic3.gov/complaint
• Reported unwanted calls to the Federal Trade Commission’s Do Not Call Registration. Online at donotcall.gov/report.html or call 1-888-382-1222, option 3
• Office of the Inspector General: oig.ssa.gov
• AARP Fraud Watch Network (any age welcome) Helpline 877-908-3360
• IRS: report email scams impersonating the IRS to phishing@irs.gov
• Call the Wyoming Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) for assistance with potential Medicare fraud, abuse, or errors at 1 800 856-4398
• Victim Support: The AARP Fraud Watch Network and Volunteers of America (VOA) created a new, free program to provide emotional support for people impacted by a scam or fraud, called ReST. Visit www.aarp.org/fraudsupport to learn more about the free program and register