Leigh News
Council warns of cyberscam
9:00am Tuesday 7th February 2012
Wigan Council officers have alerted national Census officials to a cyberscam which could have seen residents unwittingly giving all their personal information to a fake website.
The Census, which householders had to complete last year, was operated under strict security regulations. But this week, a borough resident alerted the council to an email purporting to be from Census.co.uk – nothing to do with the official Census.
The email says all the proper things about the importance of the Census and the penalties for not completing it, but is addressed to “everyone” and invites the recipient to click a link and complete all their personal details online. This would never happen from an official email.
Julie Middlehurst, Wigan Council's Chief Trading Standards Officer, said: "Criminals are clever people, and cyber criminals in particular are finding increasingly sophisticated ways of getting hold of your details. Our advice is simple. Do not take at face value any unsolicited approaches, regardless of whether they come in the form of phone calls, emails or visitors to your front door."
She advises: • Never provide personal information, such as credit card or bank details, to an unsolicited caller or email – even if it seems to be a respected company.
• Do not go to a website, type anything into a computer, install software or follow any other instruction from someone who calls out of the blue.
• Keep your computer’s operating system up to date and install security updates regularly • Use a strong password and change it regularly.
• Make sure the computer firewall is turned on and that antivirus software is installed and up to date.
On receiving the tip off, council officers quickly alerted the census staff across the country so that the danger could be understood quickly.
The director of the 2011 Census, Glen Watson, said: “We are aware that an email entitled 'Population Census: a message to everyone - act now' is being circulated, allegedly in the name of National Statistician, Jil Matheson. This email demands individuals provide further personal information, supposedly for the Census and threatens fines for non-compliance. This email is a scam and a hoax. It has no connection whatsoever with the National Statistician, the 2011 Census or the Office for National Statistics.
“We believe the links in the email could download malware to any computer where the user clicks on the links. This could put your personal data, including financial information, at risk. Anyone receiving this, or similar emails, should delete them, not open any links and certainly not provide any information.”
For more information about protection against this type of threat, please see www.getsafeonline.org and report suspicious emails to www.actionfraud.org.uk The ONS have said that they take the protection of personal census information extremely seriously. Collection of census data was completed last year and no further requests will be forthcoming from the Office for National Statistics relating to the 2011 Census.