BBC News sends an alert about a phishing scam purporting to come from Westminster contractors PayByPhone. Apparently about 800 or so spoofed emails were sent to people asking for a £33.30 charge for parking on St Barnabas Street in Westminster. A file was also attached although it’s not made clear whether this contained anything malicious.
“How dare they get my details and send me spurious emails. I have never been to that street in my life.”
Phishing emails are nothing new although this appears to be a novel take on the formula. I think the person who contacted the council has perhaps overreacted just a little, given that it would be almost impossible for them to track down who actually sent the emails. I can’t see how the council could really be blamed for this and nobody appears to have asked the outraged recipient whether he ever used the email address to sign up for any products or online services previously. It could just as easily have been a leak from a mailing list, or someone selling on his details.
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