This content was published: February 10, 2011. Phone numbers, email addresses, and other information may have changed.
Blog: A.G. warns of new e-mail scam
Story by Dana Haynes
Oregon Attorney General John Kroger is warning folks of a new e-mail scam, coming soon to a computer terminal near you.
���The e-mail describes a travel nightmare,��� Kroger wrote today. ������Help! I’ve been robbed at gunpoint while visiting London and desperately need your assistance!���
���No money, no credit cards, no passport or cell phone ��� your friend is scared and stranded,��� the attorney general continued. ���What they need you to do is wire them some money quickly. Your instinct is to help your friend. But don���t because it���s probably a scam.���
Fake emergency e-mails are being sent by scammers posing as a friend or family member, Kroger said. The messages come from thieves who gather contact information by either hijacking someone���s e-mail or social networking account, or by collecting the names of people who are cc���d on mass e-mails.
The scam message, he warns, may come from an e-mail address that looks a lot like a friend���s real one.
The attorney general’s office offers .