Over the past couple of weeks we have become aware of an increase in phishing emails using Prince of Peace staff names.
Here are a few things to look for when receiving an email that looks suspicious.
- Check the email address – don’t just look at the name, look at the email address – most phishing email addresses are not @poproseville.org email addresses (though some are).
- Unusual typology – Is there a lack of punctuation or spelling errors – this is usually a clear indicator that it is a phishing scam.
- Signature – how does the signature compare with other emails? If you need to, compare to other emails you have received from the named sender.
- Does the sender ask you to purchase something (often gift cards)? If so, this email is not coming a PoP staff person.
- Emails that ask you to handle something discreetly are not from a PoP staff member.
- Here is an example of a phishing email received by a PoP member – “Greetings! Do you have a moment. I have a request that I’d like you to handle discreetly. I’m about to attend a meeting, refrain from calls and respond to my email instead.”
God Bless.
Steve Sylvester
Lead Pastor
What do you do if you think you have received a phishing email?
1. Communicate with the sender another way (text or phone call). If you don’t have another way to communicate with the “sender”, call the church office at 651-484-4144 and ask about the legitimacy of the email.
2. Report the email address to your email server as a phishing scam.
You can read more about email phishing on the MN Attorney General’s webpage by clicking here.