Sample Phishing Email:

This guy already knows your billing address. Don't give him your credit card number too.

Phool School Rule:

Personal Data Doesn't Make it Personal

Do a simple Google search of yourself. Go ahead. Give it a try. If you haven't done this in awhile, you'll likely be surprised at how much personal information if publicly available. Your address, your spouse's name, your phone number, your company's name, your college, even how much you paid for your house -- all of this information can likely be found for free on the internet.

Just a few year ago, we had a certain level of privacy on the internet by hiding behind the sheer chaos and volume of data on the web. But as data mining has become more sophisticated, it's very easy for someone to put pieces of information together and build a story. "Jane Doe lives here, works here, and is a sports fan."

Scammers use this information to seem legitimate. Just because someone knows something about you, doesn't mean that they should be trusted. If you don't know them, don't let your guard down. Check the links before clicking and make sure they're sending you exactly where you want to go.