Email scams are nothing new… but this one is doing the rounds.
Chinese companies, seemingly authorized registrars of CNNIC (China National Network Information Center, the constructor and operator of the information society infrastructure in China) or other official bodies, are sending out emails in an attempt to convince the receiver that their existing firm, domain or brand name (business name) is in danger of being registered by an unrelated third party.
The Chinese remind the foreign company or firm of the possible negative consequence of their brand name being registered by others in China.
In addition, for their assistance, they ask for a fee (seeking money from worried business owners)
Their purpose is to make money and gather more specific information about your business.
Another scenario is where they alert you that a “.cn” domain name that is very similar to a legitimate company’s domain name has been registered. The associated website is copied directly from the legitimate business, negatively impacting the real company’s commercial interests.
One actual scam email reads as follows:
Dear Sir,
The important affair is about your company name [X Company] registration, please forward it to your company’s leader.
Recently we received the registration application from [Chinese Company, Ltd], they want to register the [X Company] brand name and some domain names. As an authoritative and responsible registrar, we need to confirm if the company is your company’s cooperative partner. Also, we need to verify whether you have allowed the company to apply these names.
Waiting for your response.
What to do when you received such an email
Send it to your firm’s IT department for evaluation, and then delete it.
Always follow the three key anti-phishing rules:
- If you receive an email from out of the blue, never click on a link or attachment.
- If you receive an email from someone you know, but it includes an attachment that you were not expecting to receive, call the sender to confirm it came from the sender and not a hacker.
- Finally, if you forget rules 1 and 2 and click on something which opens a dialogue box asking you to supply additional information—or click on something to enable a later software version or to open a zip file—close it out immediately and call your firm’s IT department to have a scan run on your computer.
Never provide information about your business or yourself to someone you don’t know. Not in an email, Whatsapp or phone call. What may seem like innocuous information can be used by hackers to develop a strategy to target you or your business.
Always be #Cybersmart
