SCAM ALERT! 
Good Afternoon to All!
Computers are wonderful machines and the ability to access so much information via the internet is truly a remarkable resource. Unfortunately, as with all good things, there are people who spend each and every day researching ways to obtain that which is not legally theirs.
This new scam came to my email here at work the other day and the sender was from a woman who had recently attended our Citizen's Academy, or at least that is what I originally thought.
Here is the email----
I'm writing this with tears in my eyes, I came down here to Wales,United Kingdom for a short vacation unfortunately i was mugged at the park of the hotel where i stayed,all cash,credit card and cell were stolen off me but luckily for me i still have my passports with me. I've been to the embassy and the Police here but they're not helping issues at all and my flight leaves in less than 3hrs from now but am having problems settling the hotel bills and the hotel manager won't let me leave until i settle the bills, I'm freaked out at the moment.
Upon receipt I immediately thought what can I do to help her? It is that emotional response that the bad guys hope to lead you to take, emotions take over and common sense goes out the window. Then I began thinking, in the United Kingdom...really? Why would she not grab a telephone and call collect for help, if she is in a panic why tell me what you have (passport), just tell me what you need. The email does not ask for anything, but clearly the immediate urge is to hit the reply button and ask what it is I can do to help. I am sure a request for a VISA or some credit card number was to follow or perhaps simply hitting the reply button would have allowed them to infect my computer.
So, we decided to first determine if we could locate our Citizen's Academy graduate and we did, she was out of town, not over seas, but in Missouri! Clearly someone had made their way into her computer and had farmed all of her email contacts. Upon making contact with her, she told us that she was going to call her friends immediately as they likely had received the same email. Hopefully no one was taken in this scheme.
There are so many threats out there, we could spend hours talking about Phsihing, Web Bots, Maleware and all the other issues that we need to be mindful of when using our computers. I offer a couple of simple suggestions-- turn your computer off at night, use secure passwords that do not contain common terms or words, a good idea is develop a password that incorporates both upper and lower case letters, numbers and characters. Be careful of links that pop up enticing you to click on them. They may look legit, but if you are not certain that they are than take a pass. One common one that I receive is that my computer is not protected and it threatens that bad things will happen if I do not click on for the protection my computer needs immediately.
I would suggest that you also consider changing that password every once in awhile. When I was with the FBI it seemed as if we changed every couple of months. The City of Portage also has a policy in which passwords are changed on a regular basis. In fact, if my computer here at work is not being used, it will lock out after a prescribed amount of time.
I visited the home site for Homeland Security and found a link that provides some good guidance. You may wish to visit http://www.dhs.gov/files/programs/gc_1202746448575.shtm
The Becker - Rinkenberger Fall Classic
For you golfers out there, our annual charity outing is set for October 1st at Forest Park in Valparaiso. Over the years we have raised over $97,000 for civic, educational, athletic and related organizations and needs. Last year we send money to a variety of folks who do good things for our community such as The Caring Place, The Porter County and Portage Police FOP's, the Porter County Prevention of Child Abuse and the list goes on. I have attached a flyer in the event you may be interested. You may enter by yourself or as a group.
Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDS)
These things save lives and soon we will initiate efforts to raise funding to get one of these in as many police cars as we can. I am working on the effort now with a special lady who is with the New Berlin, Wisconsin Police Department who I met during a July 4th visit to my hometown. She does good work and I learned something about the concept of "pay it forward". Look for more details about her message and our fundraising effort in the near future.
Mayor's Public Safety Summit
September 21st Portage High School West Auditorium 6:30 - 8:00 pm
Please mark this date and be sure to attend. You will learn of our recent effort to produce a Threat Assessment with Calumet College of St. Joseph. We have also assembled a great line up of speakers who will touch on safety issues that we can all benefit from. The line up includes:
- Mr. Brian Gensel, Porter County Prosecutor
- The Honorable Mary R. Harper, Judge, Porter County Circuit Court (tentative)
- Mr. Philip Benson, Assistant United States
- Attorney Dr.Michael Berta, Superintendant, Portage School System
- Mr. Robert Harper, Porter County Commissioner
This is going to be the first of several such presentations, we are tentatively looking for a follow up in early 2011. Each presenter will provide a brief overview of issues they deal with and will field questions as time allows. If time runs out, your questions will be answered and posted on our website and via "The Chief's Email". This is good stuff, please make every effort to attend!
Cops for a Cure
September 18th 5K run/walk for breast cancer research. Lake County Sheriff Roy Dominguez is sending over their helicopter to lead the event and we will have officers from dozens of departments on hand as well. Grab a pair of running or walking shoes and join us! For more information contact Assistant Chief Larry Jolley at ljolley@portage-in.com
That's it for now, remember, if it does not seem right it likely is not right. Call the police and let us figure it out, that's what we get paid to do. As always, feel free to invite your friends and family to send me an email to join the subscription list, all are welcome regardless of where they reside.
Contact Us!
Emergency - "911"
Routine Business - (219) 762-3122
STOP Team - (219) 764-5676
We Tip Line- 1 - 800 - 78 - CRIME