I'm crushed.... I thought I had an impressive blog following from Russia, but it appears they may simply be trolling blogs for contact information for phishing scams. As I mentioned in a previous post, I enjoy the stats that Google provides for bloggers on their site. They not only let you know how many views your blog/posts have, but also provide information on which countries readers are connecting from and what websites/search engines are leading the most readers to your site.
On my blog, my second highest 'readership,' after America, has come from Russia and the most common referal site has been yandex (a Russian version of Google). I was flattered, until I took a look at my spam e-mail folder and discovered many 'love letters' from yandex users like Juliya, who wrote:
Hi. I write this and I believe that you answer me. I hope you will be an interesting conversationalist and a good friend and maybe more. Many Humans began their relationship through correspondence. And so I decided to try it.
I am an educated, active, ambitious ... I appreciate in people a sense of proportion and the ability to laugh. :) But most of all I appreciate the confidence and the willingness of men to a new relationship. You are ready to start a new relationship? What do you think about this? Write to me. My email pinace@yandex.ru I look forward to a response. Best wishes, Juliya
'Her' e-mail sounds innocent enough, but also came with a warning from my e-mail spam box that the e-mail was similar to other e-mails associated with scams/phishing, and recommending I do not respond or provide personal details. Such a shame, I thought Juliya and I could have been something, "and maybe more."
Meanwhile, I assume Tonya had been love struck by two of Cupid's arrows, because she sent me two e-mails... each from different accounts and with different contact information. I liked her first subject line: 'Lets Talk More My Bunny.' Aawwwe, we already have pet names. In that e-mail she told me a bit about herself: "I am 25, I have finished medical university in our city and now I work as the children's doctor. My free time I spend on a hippodrome, as I 7 years am engaged in equestrian sport. I think more about my appearance will tell you my photos." And in the second she focused more on me: "I would like to start correspondence with you, i have seen your profile and I'm very interested. I'm looking for loyal, romantic and intelligent guy for serious relations."
I'm sure we would have hit it off, but I think she should focus on giving great medical care to the children, rather than our long distance romance. Although, I did appreciate the fact that she knew the way to my heart was talking about how awesome I am. Thanks Tanya, I'm glad you noticed.
With all the love interest from Russia, news of cyber attacks on the US from China, recent cyber attacks on S. Korea's banking and media industry, and a recent flair up in e-mail hacking on my friends' accounts, I thought I would also offer some computer/Internet security advice:
1) Not everything you read on the Internet is true. Shocking I know, but please do a search before forwarding that warning or government conspiracy e-mail, or reposting it on Facebook. Snopes.com is a good place to start for those.
2) If you receive an e-mail from a friend with a hyperlink or attachment, be suspicious first. (This is also true for social media posts) If it contains no personal message from your friend, or the message is very generic, contact them and ask if they really sent it, BEFORE you click on the link or open the attachment. This is a common way viruses, trojans, worms and other malware/spyware is spread.
If your e-mail account is hacked and this kind of e-mail is sent from your account, or if you click a link or attachment on an e-mail like this you should:
a. Contact everyone in your contacts and tell them not to open attachments, or click on hyperlinks.
b. Delete the e-mail
c. Update your anti-virus/malware software and run a virus scan of your computer.
d. Change your e-mail password from a separate/clean computer. You may want to change other passwords you have for other accounts/services as well.
3) I could go on forever, but instead, here are some other good reference sites to learn more:
As I mentioned above: http://www.snopes.com/ Interestingly, snopes started as a 'mom and pop' website founded by Barbara and David Mikkelson, who did it as a hobby because they enjoyed researching urban legends.
Hoax-Slayer: http://hoax-slayer.com/ which "is dedicated to debunking email hoaxes, thwarting Internet scammers, combating spam, and educating web users about email and Internet security issues."
The FBI e-scam alerts: http://www.fbi.gov/scams-
And, if you dont have anti-virus software, get some ASAP. If you use Microsoft software you are at greater risk because they are the largest target. Also, for mobile devices Android platforms are more risky because their APP vetting is not as controlled as Apple. If you are big into Android APPs watch your bills (phone and credit) closely, because free APPs can cost you big, when they are a scam. But I digress... Here is a review of Antivirus software products with some good links for discount purchase: http://anti-virus-software-
4) Did you click those links on number three? If so, please review number two? I'm kidding, but seriously, be suspicious of links.
5) If you read this far and you are actually a legitimate Russian who enjoys my blog, tell Juliya and Tonya I said Hello, from America with love.
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