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Customs and Border Protection Email Scam

Federal Bureau of Investigation

By News Staff Member
Monday, April 27, 2009

A spam e-mail claiming to be from former US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Assistant Commissioner Thomas S. Winkowski is currently being circulated. This attempt to defraud is the typical e-mail scam using the name and reputation of a federal government official to create an air of authenticity.

The spam e-mail indicates the CBP has stopped a Diplomat who is carrying a consignment to be delivered to the recipient's residence. This consignment allegedly contains millions of dollars, which is revealed to be an inheritance for the e-mail recipient.

As with many other scams, this e-mail advises the recipient they will be permitted to access this inheritance once the recipient has given the sender of the e-mail their personal information.

This e-mail is a hoax. Do not respond.

The US CBP does not send unsolicited e-mails. Consumers should not respond to unsolicited e-mails or click on any embedded links, as they may contain viruses or malware.

It is imperative consumers guard their personally identifiable information (PII). Examples of a person's PII include, but are not limited to: date of birth; social security number; and bank account numbers. Providing your PII will compromise your identity.

The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C), and the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). IC3 accepts online Internet crime complaints from either the person who believes they were defrauded or from a third party to the complainant. (Photo by IC3.)

If you have received this e-mail, or a similar e-mail, please file a complaint on the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) website.