It happens at least a couple of times a year, sometimes more. An email or phone call goes out, supposedly from someone at UUCPA–usually a minister–asking you to send money, or click on a link, or the like. And . . . it’s a scam.
Scammers love to pretend they are from a church. They know that church people trust each other and have generous hearts, and they are hoping to exploit these good qualities to con you out of your money or steal your identity. It happens to very smart people. So please keep these warnings in mind:
- Never click on a link in an email unless you are certain the email was sent by someone you know and trust.
- Neither Rev. Cat nor I will ever ask you to send us money.
- Trust your intuition. Do we typically sign our full names or sign off with words about God? If it doesn’t sound quite like us, it probably isn’t.
- Be very, very suspicious of emails or calls expressing urgency. Con artists try to rush you. We won’t.
- To check if it really comes from someone at UUCPA, look at the sender’s email address.
- If you’re still not sure, drop the supposed sender a line saying “Is this really you?”, not via Reply (which will just go back to the scammer if it is a scammer), but using the address you know. For example, my and Rev. Cat’s addresses are here. Whether we really sent it or not, we will be glad you checked.
Unfortunately, although we take precautions such as changing our passwords frequently, it’s all too easy for people to run this kind of scam. So please be vigilant, and if in any doubt at all, check.
Blessings,
Amy
Photo by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash