CDC warns flu e-mail probe is a scam

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If you receive an e-mail from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asking you to create a personal H1N1 vaccination profile, don’t open it.

According to CDC officials, the e-mail is part of a phishing scam, one in which a sender uses the message to obtain private information that could lead to identity theft.

By clicking on a link in the message, the recipient could have a malicious code invade their computer.

"We first saw this scam about two weeks ago when it began showing up in a number of different mailboxes. Some of those who received the e-mail were justifiably suspicious and contacted our office," said Jeff Dimond, CDC media relations representative.

In the phishing message, residents are being asked to register for a system allowing the CDC to keep track of "vaccinated and non-vaccinated people."

Several components to the message should raise a red flag, officials say.

"First of all, state health departments are responsible for the distribution and administration of the vaccine, so the CDC would not put such a registry together," said Dimond.

"Secondly, the United States government does not send out unsolicited e-mails to anyone asking for personal data."

Among other things, the fraudulent e-mail asks for private data like Social Security numbers, medical history and addresses.

To reduce the risk of being the victim of a phishing scam, the CDC urges individuals to not open or respond to unsolicited e-mail messages or click on embedded links. The agency also encourages computer owners to be sure to update their anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall and anti-spam software regularly.

"Unfortunately, we have seen other scams in the past that utilized public health situations as an (entry) to attempt to gather personal data from unsuspecting individuals," Dimond said.

"Anyone who fell for this scam would have been at risk for identity theft."



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