Scam Scares People With Fake $900 Walmart TV Purchase

This is pretty clever as scams go: trying to steal financial information by making people think it has already been stolen.

Walmart is warning customers of a new phishing email that appears to be an expensive order receipt from Walmart.com:

There was a false email sent to a number of people this morning claiming to be from Walmart.com. This email looks like a confirmation of a purchase made on Walmart.com, but is actually a phishing email attempting to gather information from the recipient.

Again, this email is not from Walmart.com and it is important that recipients DO NOT click on any links in the email or respond in any way. We are investigating the source of the email and working with appropriate authorities.

At least one version of the email misspells the company name as “Wallmart” and shows an $898 receipt for a 50-inch 3-D TV, OregonLive.com says. Walmart has received dozens of calls about the scam.

If you get such an email and can’t remember purchasing anything from Walmart, the first step should be to check for a mysterious transaction in your checking or credit card account. It’s always possible someone really did steal your financial information. It happened to me last year.

You may also want to report the scam to your state attorney general’s office, and warn friends and family.