DarkFiber Consulting – IT Managed Services

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has released information warning the public about fraudulent email messages purporting to come from the FBI or the Department of Homeland Security. These email messages contain a malicious attachment that claims to provide an intelligence report or bulletin, but in reality attempts to launch malware on the user’s system.

More information regarding these messages can be found in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s New E-Scams and Warnings web site.

To help protect against this type of attack, DarkFiber Consulting recommends that users avoid opening attachments contained in unsolicited email messages. Additional tips regarding email attachments can be found in the DarkFiber Consulting Cyber Security Tip – Using Caution with Email Attachments.

DarkFiber Consulting is aware of public reports of an email scam circulating that is targeting holiday travelers. The email messages related to this scam appear to come from legitimate major airlines and contain a .zip attachment.  This .zip attachment appears to contain a purchase invoice and flight ticket. If a user opens this attachment, malicious code may be installed on the system.

DarkFiber Consulting encourages users to do the following to help mitigate the risks:

• Install antivirus software and keep the virus signatures up to date.
• Use caution when opening attachments.
• Refer to the Recognizing and Avoiding Email Scams (pdf) document for more information on avoiding email scams.
• Refer to the Avoiding Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks document for more information on social engineering attacks.