The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) suggests these tips to help avoid getting caught by a phishing scam:

• Treat with caution any unsolicited e-mail that claims to come from a trusted company.

• If you get an e-mail or pop up message that asks for personal information or financial information, do not click on the link. Legitimate companies do not update information this way.

• Don't email personal or financial information. E-mail is not a secure way to transmit personal or financial information.

• Ask yourself, “Why is the company writing to me about this?” If you have any doubts, call the company or go to its website on your own.

• Review credit card and credit union statements as soon as you get them to determine if there are any unauthorized charges. If your information is compromised, get a fraud alert placed on your credit report.

• Use anti-virus software and keep it up to date.

• Maintain up-to-date firewalls and security patches.

• Be careful about opening attachments or downloading any files from emails you receive, regardless of who sent them. The attachments could contain viruses or spyware, which records where you go on-line and captures any passwords or credit card numbers you type on-line.

• Look for "https" in the URLs displayed in your browser's address bar. The "s" stands for "secure." If you don't see it, you are not in a secure Web session and shouldn't enter any personal or financial information.

• Check the URL. If you see an @ sign in the middle of the URL, there is a good chance it’s a phishing site. Legitimate companies use the domain name in their Web address (www.company.com), and don’t have an @ sign in their URL.

For more information or to file a complaint with the FTC visit www.ftc.gov.