As U.S. President Obama focuses on preparing an economic stimulus package, it is clear that spammers are also working on their own unique version of a “stimulus package.” Spam levels are continuing to rise post-McColo shutdown, accounting for over 79 percent of all email in recent days. As the economic situation continues to worsen across the globe (with the unemployment rate in the U.S. expected to have jumped to 7.5 percent in January from 7.2 percent the month prior) it is clear that spammers believe that some clouds have a silver lining. A number of economic stimulus-related spam emails have emerged in recent days. One example claimed to be from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and encouraged the recipient to “Submit your Economic Stimulus Payment form.” This is a common spam tactic used by spammers to try and obtain personal information from a recipient who may be unfamiliar with such attacks. It should also be noted that as the April “tax day” in the U.S. approaches, the IRS clearly indicates on its website that it “does not initiate communication with taxpayers through email.”
Another example of these economic stimulus-related emails claimed that “Economic Stimulus Grants are now available” and that in order to claim this government funding, the recipient should click on a URL link included in the spam message body. According to a “testimonial” observed on the spam URL link: “I found the grant I needed and filled out the forms and sent them in and in about two weeks I received a check in my hand for $100,000. I’m telling everyone I know about you all and what you have done for me!” In this difficult economic climate, the temptation might exist for some people to avail of one of these “offers,” but beware; these types of message are often a ruse by spammers to collect personal information that may be used in the future to prey on unsuspecting individuals.