# To Whom Can I Report This Scam E-mail? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 31, 2004, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-whom-can-i-report-this-scam-e-mail/237566 "2004-03-31T17:28:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-whom-can-i-report-this-scam-e-mail/237566/1 "2004-03-31T17:28:46Z")
Just got this e-mail: \*Dear Citibank Member, This email was sent by the Citibank server to verify your E-mail address. You must complete this process by clicking on the link below and entering in the small window your Citibank ATM/Debit Card number and PIN that you use on ATM. This is done for your protection - because some of our members no longer have access to their email addresses and we must verify it. To verify your E-mail address and access your bank account, click on the link below: (link deleted) Thank you for using Citibank\* Riiiiight. First, I am not a member of Citibank, and second, if I were, I wouldn’t be boob enough to fall for this. I deleted it immediately—is there any agency I can report this to? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-whom-can-i-report-this-scam-e-mail/237566/2 "2004-03-31T17:31:19Z")
I’d report it to my ISP and let them track down the spammer’s ISP and report it to them. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-whom-can-i-report-this-scam-e-mail/237566/3 "2004-03-31T17:33:20Z")
I would definately be sure Citibank is aware of this, at the very least. ---
**Author:** ![Qburn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/bc79bd/32.png) [@Qburn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qburn)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-whom-can-i-report-this-scam-e-mail/237566/4 "2004-03-31T17:33:30Z")
Here’s a link: [Report E-mail Abuse](https://www.citibank.com/us/cbna/email_abuse/existing/form.htm?subject=Citibank%20E-mail%20Verification) , I got it from [snopes](http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/scams/citibank3.asp) ---
**Author:** ![snorlax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@snorlax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snorlax)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-whom-can-i-report-this-scam-e-mail/237566/5 "2004-03-31T17:35:17Z")
This is a well-known scam known as “phishing”. Try a google on this and you will see plenty of links describing the MO. You could try reporting to these folks: [http://www.antiphishing.org/report\_phishing.htm](http://www.antiphishing.org/report_phishing.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-whom-can-i-report-this-scam-e-mail/237566/6 "2004-03-31T17:35:46Z")
I logged onto Citibank’s site, and they are already very much aware of this particular fraud. I guess they have already contacted whatever government or internet agency would be involved? I needn’t warn people as smart as Dopers not to fall for this, I assume! ---
**Author:** ![Mauvaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mauvaise/32/11084_2.png) [@Mauvaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauvaise)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-whom-can-i-report-this-scam-e-mail/237566/7 "2004-03-31T21:10:59Z")
Whenever I get that type of spam, be it from a bank, paypal, ebay, whatever. I like to type in "Nice Try, “A-hole”. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-whom-can-i-report-this-scam-e-mail/237566/8 "2004-03-31T22:43:09Z")
> [@Mauvaise](#): > > Whenever I get that type of spam, be it from a bank, paypal, ebay, whatever. I like to type in "Nice Try, “A-hole”. If you reply to spam, the spammer knows they have a “live” account. It’s a really bad idea to do this. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-whom-can-i-report-this-scam-e-mail/237566/9 "2004-03-31T22:47:41Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > I logged onto Citibank’s site, and they are already very much aware of this particular fraud. I guess they have already contacted whatever government or internet agency would be involved? > > I needn’t warn people as smart as Dopers not to fall for this, I assume! It may still be worth forwarding them the intact message, as the scammer will be sending them out from a series of connections, and linking to a series of servers for the actual scam page, as each one gets shut down in turn. reporting it might get the current version shut down quicker and it might help them track down the scammer. _Might_. ---
**Author:** ![InTransit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e47774/32.png) [@InTransit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InTransit)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2004, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-whom-can-i-report-this-scam-e-mail/237566/10 "2004-04-01T01:13:50Z")
You can also forward spam (especially after repeated failures to “opt out”) to [uce@ftc.gov](mailto:uce@ftc.gov).