The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is warning consumers to be cautious of e-mails claiming that someone has filed a complaint against them or their company with a government agency or other organization.
02/01/08 — The fraudulent e-mails state that a complaint has been filed with the Department of Justice or another organization, such as the Internal Revenue Service, Social Security Administration, or the Better Business Bureau. The e-mails are likely an effort to collect personally identifiable information.
The e-mails address the recipients by name, and other personal information may be contained within the e-mail. Some of the fraudulent e-mails refer to a complaint that is detailed in an attachment. It is believed that the attachment actually contains virus software designed to steal passwords and other personal information from the recipient. The virus is wrapped in a screensaver file wherein most anti-virus programs are unable to detect its malicious intent. Once downloaded, the virus is designed to monitor username and password logins, and record the activity, as well as other password-type information, entered on the compromised machine.
Consumers who receive scam e-mail should notify the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) by filing a complaint at http://www.ic3.gov/.