Tuesday, September 13, 2011

WARNING: NACHA is a GOTCHA!

Got this e-mail from transactions@nacha.org this morning:

The ACH transaction (ID: 2************), recently sent from your checking account (by you or any other person), was rejected by the other financial institution.
Rejected transaction Transaction ID: 2************
Rejection Reason See details in the report below Transaction Report report_ 2************.pdf.exe (self-extracting archive, Adobe PDF)
13450 Sunrise Valley Drive, Suite 100 Herndon, VA 20171 (703) 561-1100 2011
NACHA – The Electronic Payments Association


Being on a Mac, I was too worried about an executable file messing up my computer and even if I wanted to I couldn't do much with it. Still didn't want it hanging around. And since I haven't made many electronic transactions recently I was even more suspicious. I didn't bother calling the number at the bottom of the screen as I figured it was a phishing expedition. Besides, anyone could set up a bogus phone line and tell me whatever they wanted me to believe to get my information and… POOF… I am sold off into electronic slavery… no longer the owner of my own name. What I did do, and what YOU SHOULD do any time you receive ANYTHING that requests information or that you click on a report or "visit a site" through a link provided is search the internet. Check Snopes. They have proven reliable in the past but don't stop there, look for the name of the so-calle organization that sent it. See what others might be saying.

I did this and found that quite a number of others have received similar messages. One called the number at the bottom of the so-called official e-mail and got that quick busy signal that one sometimes gets when a phone is out of commission. Snopes had the story. Even the real NACHA seems to be warning people.

Hard times have hit this world. And with it have come a renewed onslaught of people going on phishing organizations. I get e-mail everyday telling me that I won a FIFA lottery, or that I can get millions if only I would allow a poor, dying man a place to deposit his money so I could carry on his noble cause. Be smart people. No one is going to give you money and you haven't won any competitions, especially if you didn't enter them.

Be smart. Be safe. Be ever vigilant.