DAWSON CITY – Northwestel Inc. email users were plagued by several phishing scam attempts over the last 2 1/2 last weeks.

The first one, on Dec. 5, advised users that their mail delivery was being delayed because they needed to update their accounts:

“NorthWesTel Mail “Important update “Hello, Account: {your account name} Error

“Your incoming messages were placed on hold due to our recent Update. 

“Verify your account immediately to get your mail updated.”

There followed a hotlink button, outlined in green, to press to go to the procedure, and then this line:

“Once you upgrade to a new version of  northwestel, your incoming Email will reflect within 24 hrs.”

“Thank you for using  northwestel. This email was sent by  northwestel webmail. © 2022  northwestel. All rights reserved. northwestel    respects your privacy.”

But if you just tested this message by hitting “reply”, you found that it originated at“site@rutlandrugby.com”, which is not a company address.

On Dec. 15, there was a shorter attempt, originating from “noreply.cc@ northwestel.net”

“Dear Valued User,

“Your E-mail information will be deleted from our database server if not verified.

“To continue with this process, click  My Account    to sign in for verification.

“Nοte. Τhis is essential to your cοntinuοus use οf  NorthwestelServices. E.g Μail, Calendar, & Cοntacts. Τhank yοu.”

The next day, Dec. 16, there was a more enticing message; containing not just a stick, but also a few carrots. This one originated from “firdowsagoosaar@gmail.com”.

“NorthwesTel - 2022 Webmail Upgrading2022 Webmail Upgrading

“To: undisclosed-recipients:

“This is an automatic message from our server; Your Webmail account is currently out of date due to recent upgrades to our services.

“We may at any time terminate its services for these accounts. (highlighted in red).

“Please follow the link below to update your account :

“ NEW VERSION” (the link button)

“What’s different in the new version?

“This version of Web-mail includes an upgraded interface, enhancements to many  existing features, and additional features that were not previously available in  Web-mail Classic. We know that change can be difficult and we want to make  the transition as smooth as possible.

“ Plus you’ll get:

• Increased email storage with up to 20 GB

• Faster page and email load times

• More functional search feature

• Increased security

• Supports the latest web browsers and plug-ins (I, Firefox and safari)”

On Dec. 18, Northwestel tech support confirmed that none of these email warnings were real, indicating the company would never actually contact its customers in this manner, and that several other people had called to inquire about these notices over the last few days.