For example, you might get an email that looks like it’s from your bank. So the sender name will be “US Bank of America. " If the email address is something like “customerservice@nowhere. com,” chances are you’re being spoofed. If someone’s personal email address is spoofed, make sure the email address listed is the one you have for that person.
In Apple’s Mail app, you can find header information by selecting the message you want to review, choosing “View” at the top of the app screen, then “Message,” then “All Headers. " You can also press Shift+Command+H. In Outlook, select View/Options. In Outlook Express, select Properties/Details. In Hotmail go to Options/Mail Display Settings/Message Headers and select “Full. " In Yahoo! Mail select “Full Headers. "
For example, in the received filed from a legitimate Gmail address, it will look something like “Received from ‘google. com: domain of’” and then the actual email address.
So for example, if the email name is “US Bank of America,” the return path email address should be something like “customerservice@USBankofAmerica. com. " If it’s not, chances are the email is spoofed.
For example, a subject line like “Your account has been suspended” or “Take action now: account suspended” indicates the email is a spoof. If the spoofed email is coming from someone you know, the subject line might be something like “I need your help. "
If you suspect an email has been spoofed, don’t reply directly to the email asking for clarification. If you do, it’s a good way for the person on the other end of the spoofed email to try to get more information from you.
