Liz Phair aspires to be "Extraordinary"

Friday, February 22, 2008

Beware of Key Bank "Unauthorized Access to Account" email scam

Once again I find myself in the position to warn the general public of a scam that is making the rounds of the web. This time it comes in the form of an email, supposedly from Key Bank indicating that the "bank" is concerned that your account has been accessed without approval.

The subject line reads: Please Update Your KeyBank Account and the message is as follows (please note the link has been deactivated):

Notification of Key Bank Online Banking Unauthorized Account Access
Dear Key Bank customer. Please read this message and follow it's instructions.

Unauthorized Account Access
We recently reviewed your account, and we suspect an unauthorized ATM based transaction on your account. Therefore as a preventive measure we have temporary limited your access to sensitive Key Bank features.

To ensure that your account is not compromised please login to Key Bank Online Banking and Investing by clicking this link, verify your identify and your online accounts will be reactivated by our system.

To get started, please click the link below:

https://accounts2.keybank.com/ib2/enroll_jsp/pageStart.jsp

Important information from Key Bank.

This e-mail contains information directly related to your account with us, other services to witch you have subscribed, and/or any application you may have submitted.
Key Bank and its service providers are committed to protecting your privacy and ask you not to send sensitive account information through e-mail.



There are a few disturbing things about this email:
1. It's not from KeyBank!!
2. The link is a secure (https) that looks like it goes to Key Bank but redirects to a different site. The secure site part makes it pretty scary.
3. There are a few versions of this one going around. Here's another:

Dear " " Key Bank Customer,
We recently reviewed your account, and suspect that your Key Bank Internet Banking account may have been accessed by an unauthorized third party. Protecting the security of your account and of the Key Bank network is our primary concern. Therefore, as a preventative measure, we have temporarily limited access to sensitive account features.

To restore your account access, please take the following steps to ensure that your account has not been compromised:

1. Login to your Key Bank Internet Banking account. In case you are not enrolled for Internet Banking, you will have to use your Social Security Number (without spaces or dashes) as both your User ID and Password and fill in all the required information, including your name and account number.

2. Review your recent account history for any unauthorized withdrawals or deposits, and check your account profile to make sure not changes have been made. If any unauthorized activity has taken place on your account, report this to Key Bank sraff immediately.

To get started, please click on the link below:


We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and appreciate your assistance in helping us maintain the integrity of the entire Key Bank system. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.

Sincerely,
The Key Bank Team

and another:

KEY - Security Alert

Dear valued customer,

Fraudulent activity has been registered on some of our accounts. Click here to prove your identity. Not proved accounts will be suspended.

Once you have confirmed your account records you will be able to continue using your Online Banking and Investing.


In any event, DO NOT click these links. Instead call Key Bank at 1-800-KEY2YOU to discuss your account or 1-800-433-0124 to report email fraud. You can also email them at emailfraud@keybank.com.

Good luck and stay safe!


___________________________________________________________

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Accolades to Education.com--Part of Something Extraordinary

Have you ever begun a project or gotten a gig thinking it will be good to pay some of the bills, but without thinking about the far-reaching effects it might have? Well, I'm lucky enough to be part of the beta-launch of the site Education.com as an ongoing writer. I didn't know the potential of the site when I began writing for them. Today there's a wonderfully positive write-up in the Wall Street Journal and Education.com recently won the coveted DEMOGod award at the DEMO technology conference, alongside such giants as LeapFrog Enterprises.

For me, not only has this been an ongoing gig that helps to pay a few of the bills but a chance to write quality articles about important topics, such as single fatherhood, bibliotherapy, school refusal, school crisis plans and so much more. It's great to feel as though I'm doing good work that has the potential to help parents and educators. I'm so pleased to see the site gaining momentum and recognition and to be part of something extraordinary as it's happening!