Someone is spoofing the FDIC

This morning's mail brought a missive allegedly from the FDIC asking me to use a link to check my account. Obviously I realized the FDIC does not send email about such matters.

I contacted the FDIC by phone and was assured that they were aware of the scam and were in the process of shutting it down.

The Federal government takes an extremely dim view of this sort of fraud. I predict the perpetrators will be brought to justice.

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FDIC Consumer Alerts

SEC begins to investigate hedge funds

SEC demands records from hedge funds

The Securities and Exchange Commission has ordered more than two dozen hedge funds to turn over trading records and e-mail communications made between Sept. 1-19, The Wall Street Journal reported today

The object is to determine whether traders spread rumors to manipulate shares.

Sock puppets are not just immoral, in the case of hedge funds they are illegal.

The era of e-Discovery and evidence recovery has begun

F.B.I. Looks Into 4 Firms at Center of the Economic Turmoil

F.B.I. officials said Tuesday that the total number of corporate fraud investigations at the bureau was 26, an increase from the 24 open cases cited just a week ago by Robert S. Mueller III, director of the F.B.I. That number stood at 21 as recently as July, but the bureau has not named most of the targets.

Mr. Mueller told members of the Senate Judiciary Committee that the major corporate investigations are aimed at companies that “may have engaged in misstatements in the course of what transpired during this financial crisis.”

He added that “the F.B.I. will pursue these cases as far up the corporate chain as is necessary to ensure that those responsible receive the justice they deserve.”

In addition to the major corporate cases, the bureau said it had about 1,400 open investigations into smaller companies and individuals suspected of mortgage fraud.

e-Discovery and litigation support software companies are going to do very well indeed.

SEC's 'Operation Spamalot' Targets Penny-Stock Hype

Trading Halted For 35 Firms Over E-Mails

Securities regulators yesterday halted trading in nearly three dozen companies -- the initial salvo in "Operation Spamalot," a campaign to block e-mails promoting stocks to unsuspecting investors.

Three cheers for the SEC.

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Via Thomas Claburn of Information Week, Brad Taylor of Google calls on Gmail users to report spam.