{"id":20269,"date":"2026-10-28T17:26:15","date_gmt":"2026-10-28T21:26:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gars.org\/gars\/?p=20269"},"modified":"2026-10-28T17:40:09","modified_gmt":"2026-10-28T21:40:09","slug":"email-safety-checklist-avoid-phishing-scams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gars.org\/gars\/email-safety-checklist-avoid-phishing-scams\/","title":{"rendered":"Email Safety Checklist \u2013 Avoid Phishing Scams"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"143\" data-end=\"190\">By Dave Bruse, W4DTR (with help from ChatGPT)<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p data-start=\"192\" data-end=\"259\">Before clicking anything in an email, ask yourself these questions:<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"261\" data-end=\"295\">1. Was I expecting this email?<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"296\" data-end=\"320\">If not, <strong data-start=\"304\" data-end=\"319\">be cautious<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr data-start=\"322\" data-end=\"325\" \/>\n<h3 data-start=\"327\" data-end=\"364\">2. Does the email create urgency?<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"365\" data-end=\"374\">Scammers try to make you panic and act quickly.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"365\" data-end=\"374\">Examples:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"375\" data-end=\"455\">\n<li data-start=\"375\" data-end=\"404\">\n<p data-start=\"377\" data-end=\"404\">\u201cImmediate action required\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"405\" data-end=\"436\">\n<p data-start=\"407\" data-end=\"436\">\u201cYour account will be closed\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"437\" data-end=\"455\">\n<p data-start=\"439\" data-end=\"455\">\u201cPayment failed\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"457\" data-end=\"508\">Scammers try to make you <strong data-start=\"482\" data-end=\"507\">panic and act quickly<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr data-start=\"510\" data-end=\"513\" \/>\n<h3 data-start=\"515\" data-end=\"560\">3. Is the sender\u2019s email address correct?<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"561\" data-end=\"627\">Look carefully at the <strong data-start=\"583\" data-end=\"607\">actual email address<\/strong>, not just the name.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"629\" data-end=\"697\">Example:<br data-start=\"636\" data-end=\"639\" \/>&#x2714; <a class=\"decorated-link cursor-pointer\" rel=\"noopener\" data-start=\"641\" data-end=\"659\">support@paypal.com<\/a><br data-start=\"659\" data-end=\"662\" \/>&#x2716; <a class=\"decorated-link cursor-pointer\" rel=\"noopener\" data-start=\"664\" data-end=\"697\">support@paypal-security-alert.com<\/a><\/p>\n<hr data-start=\"699\" data-end=\"702\" \/>\n<h3 data-start=\"704\" data-end=\"744\">4. Never click login links in emails<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"745\" data-end=\"776\">If an email asks you to log in:<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"778\" data-end=\"859\">&#x2714; Open your browser<br data-start=\"797\" data-end=\"800\" \/>&#x2714; Go to the website yourself (using a bookmark if possible)<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"861\" data-end=\"893\">Do <strong data-start=\"864\" data-end=\"892\">not click the email link<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr data-start=\"895\" data-end=\"898\" \/>\n<h3 data-start=\"900\" data-end=\"941\">5. Do not open unexpected attachments<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"942\" data-end=\"969\">Especially files ending in:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"970\" data-end=\"1007\">\n<li data-start=\"970\" data-end=\"978\">\n<p data-start=\"972\" data-end=\"978\"><code data-start=\"972\" data-end=\"978\">.zip<\/code><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"979\" data-end=\"988\">\n<p data-start=\"981\" data-end=\"988\"><code data-start=\"981\" data-end=\"988\">.html<\/code><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"989\" data-end=\"997\">\n<p data-start=\"991\" data-end=\"997\"><code data-start=\"991\" data-end=\"997\">.exe<\/code><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"998\" data-end=\"1007\">\n<p data-start=\"1000\" data-end=\"1007\"><code data-start=\"1000\" data-end=\"1007\">.docm<\/code><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"1009\" data-end=\"1053\">If you were <strong data-start=\"1021\" data-end=\"1052\">not expecting it, delete it<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr data-start=\"1055\" data-end=\"1058\" \/>\n<h3 data-start=\"1060\" data-end=\"1105\">6. Never send passwords or codes by email<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"1106\" data-end=\"1141\">No legitimate company will ask for:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"1142\" data-end=\"1199\">\n<li data-start=\"1142\" data-end=\"1157\">\n<p data-start=\"1144\" data-end=\"1157\">your password<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1158\" data-end=\"1178\">\n<p data-start=\"1160\" data-end=\"1178\">verification codes<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1179\" data-end=\"1199\">\n<p data-start=\"1181\" data-end=\"1199\">security questions<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr data-start=\"1201\" data-end=\"1204\" \/>\n<h3 data-start=\"1206\" data-end=\"1238\">7. When in doubt, do nothing<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"1239\" data-end=\"1278\">Delete the email or verify another way.<\/p>\n<hr data-start=\"1280\" data-end=\"1283\" \/>\n<h1 data-start=\"1285\" data-end=\"1298\">Golden Rule<\/h1>\n<p data-start=\"1299\" data-end=\"1390\"><strong data-start=\"1299\" data-end=\"1390\">If an email asks for money, passwords, or personal information \u2014 stop and verify first.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dave&#8217;s Computer Tips &#8211; March 2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[63],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20269","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-computer-tips"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Email Safety Checklist \u2013 Avoid Phishing Scams - 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