Since 2017, we have sent out yearly “Fraudulent Email Advisory” email notices to all of our members. Over these years, we have received numerous scam emails at LeTip HQ with people impersonating staff members asking for money or other things. We’ve also received reports of fraudulent scam emails where the senders are impersonating LeTip chapter members. We take this extremely seriously and are taking any steps we can to help you know how to avoid these scams.
LeTip employees and members will NEVER send you an email asking for money, gift cards, etc. If you get an email like this, IT IS A SCAM.
These scams are not unique to LeTip. It has been happening to companies across the globe including everyone from the International Monetary Fund all the way to Amazon and it has been happening for over a decade or more. Even the FTC has a notice on their website regarding gift card scams.
It’s only easy to fall for these scams if you don’t know what to look for. What you want to be on the lookout for are emails that are requesting money, bank account information, gift cards, or other sensitive personal information. They can be impersonating LeTip employees and/or LeTip members, and generally from a strange address (and more rarely, sometimes spoofed from the actual person’s email address). However, in every email we’ve seen, 100% of them are fake addresses.
See how the email addresses circled in red are not legitimate email addresses that a regular person would have? That is an immediate red flag. We can’t stop you from getting these types of emails, but there are still ways to keep yourself protected from them. Here are 6 Ways to Avoid Falling for an Email Scam:
1. When in doubt, call and ask. If you get a request for something that seems off, or suspicious, feel free to call the person who it appears to be from to confirm it is legitimate and genuine.
2. Check the email address it is being sent from. Often it will not be the person’s regular email address of who they are claiming to be. It is also possible, but less likely, that the email will come from their actual address.
3. Check the tone and verbiage of the email. Does the email sound like this person normally writes? Is their signature the same, with phone number, company logo etc. or is that left blank?
4. Read what they are asking for. For instance: If you receive an email from someone claiming to be a LeTip member asking you to buy a bunch of Amazon gift cards, or someone claiming to be a LeTip employee who is asking you to transfer them $1,000 for a surgical procedure, it is most definitely a scam.
5. Do not download any attachments. These most likely contain a virus that will harm your computer.
6. Do not click on any links within the email. Often there will be links in the email that take you to a fake (but often genuine looking) copy of a login website for your email, social media, or other type of private account. If you go there and enter your information, they will have access to your account and your account will be compromised.
We hope this information is helpful to you. Online scams are extremely common, but if you know what to look for they are usually easy to catch. Just keep an eye out and remain vigilant.
