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Phishing: Example 1, real email sent to me!

from: Barclays Bank
to: webmaster@thisdomain.net

Dear Sir/Madam

Please note that your Barclays Online Account is about to expire. In order for it to remain active and avoid a temporal hold on your funds, we need you to update your personal information, this is also a new security statment to give our customers a better, fast and secure online banking service.

Please follow the link below and proceed to update your information:

http://www.barclays-co.uk/cgi-bin/accountupdate/1,00,102.html

Tank you for your patience as we work together to protect your account.

Sincerely,

Barclays Bank Customer Service

*Important* Please update your records on or before 48 hours, a failure to update your records will result in a temporal hold on your funds.

How did I recognize it as phishing?
1. I do not have a Barclays Bank account.
2. My bank would not send an email to "webmaster"
3. My bank knows who I am and would not address me as Dear Sir/Madam
4. The From and Reply-to addresses are incorrect domain so are fakes. Barclays Bank domain addresses are barclays.co.uk and barclays.com.
5. Spelling errors ... Tank and statment. A major bank would allow typo errors like these.

NB: I could just as easily have phoned up the bank and queried this email! Never forget that phishers get rich on our fears or greed or emotional well-being.