The BBB system is reporting numerous calls from companies who have received a compliant notification that links to a non-BBB website. This follows a recent surge for the same scam that has now resurfaced for the Better Business Bureau. This is a phishing scam and not legitimate email from the BBB.
The email that looks like it is from the BBB with the subject line “Complaint from your customers.” This e-mail is fraudulent; ignore its contents and delete it immediately. If you have already clicked on a link in the e-mail, make sure your virus protection is up to date and run a full system virus scan of your computer.
The email contains a dangerous attachment regarding a complaint and appears to direct recipients to the BBB website. The e-mails have return addresses that BBB does not use (one example is riskmanager@bbb.org) and it is signed with the address of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, the national office of the BBB system. The e-mail contains a link to a non-BBB web site. Do NOT click on the link.
BBB is working with law enforcement to determine its source and stop the fraudulent campaign.
Anyone who receives a complaint e-mail claiming to be from BBB should not click on any links in the e-mail. The BBB advises any business that receives this e-mail to take the following steps:
- Do not click on any links or reply to the message,
- Completely delete the message from your inbox, and
- Run a full virus scan on your computer if you did click on any links.
To help track down the perpetrator, recipients are asked to forward the message to phishing@council.bbb.org,
You can also report any information received to BBB’s Scam Portal at https://www.bbb.org/scam/report-a-scam and then delete it. If you have any questions, please call BBB serving Upstate New York at 877.478.8083.
