VIDOR, Texas — A year after he lost thousands of dollars and his identity because of an email scam, Mark Flaming of Vidor is still paying the price.
Every morning, Flaming gets online to check his email as many do, but a couple of days ago he noticed one that raised red flags from the Social Security Office saying that urgent action was needed.
It said his social security number was connected to drug trafficking. It urged him to click on a fake PDF with his email on it, refusing to fall for the scam again, Flaming now wants to spread awareness.
"Money laundering, and drug trafficking and that's according to New Mexico and Texas, and the Texas laws they supposedly had a judge bring up a court order that deleted and cancelled my social security number," Flaming told 12News about the contents of the fraudulent email.
The fake PDF that the email was urging Flaming to click supposedly had the next step contact information. It created a sense of urgency which is a favorite tactic for scammers to reel in their victims with.
"Do not open that attachment," Flaming said, "I would bet you anything, because it's how they got me before, that there's a trojan in there and it's gonna steal your banking information."
A few years ago Flaming clicked a similar email. He says $2,000 was stolen from his bank account as well as his identity. This simple mistake is still following him to this day.
"I'll get a notice from another state that I've never been to that my drivers license is suspended there and blah blah blah. Then I have to jump through hoops to get it straightened out again," Flaming told 12News.
For those wondering what a "phishing email scam" is, Preactive IT Solutions owner, Charles Swihart sheds some light on the subject.
"Throw a net over the side of the boat, and they see what they can catch, right? So they throw out 10,000 of these bogus emails," Swihart told 12News.
These scams have become such a problem that tech experts at Preactive IT Solutions in Beaumont teach businesses how to protect company from scammers.
"Look closely at the email address, hover over the links and let the little window pop up and show you where it's gonna go if you click it. Then really read that and if you wanna go to that site, just go type it in yourself, if you don't trust this source," he said.
Swihart implores people to remain vigilant and wants to remind them that there is someone out there that wants to hack you.
The Better Business Bureau shares how to protect your business against scams.
You can also learn how to protect your individual devices at Grinnell Computers & Security.