Phishing

According to the FBI, phishing has become the leading type of internet fraud and costs billions of dollars a year:

"The typical phishing attack involves the scammer sending the victim an e-mail message, which appears to be from a legitimate business. The e-mail message requests the victim to update, or verify, personal information by clicking on a link in the e-mail message. This link will take the victim to what appears to be a legitimate company web page. However, the web page is actually a well designed phony web page, which only looks authentic . When the victim enters personal information into the web page, the victim is actually supplying information directly to the scammer."

Here's how the FBI says to avoid phishing:

1. Never use the links or phone numbers contained in an email that asks you to verify personal information. Legitimate institutions never ask for this information electronically.
2. To verify any unexpected emails, call your financial institution using a trusted phone number--the number printed on your bank statement or on the back of your credit card.
3. Keep your anti-virus software and firewall up-to-date.

For more guidance, see the articles on phishing from Yahoo! Tech.