The RCIPS is informing the public of a fraudulent email being sent to members of the public purporting to be from the RCIPS Financial Crime Unit. The email suggests that a complaint has been filed against the recipient and contains a link (described as an “attachment”) to the case file for the recipient to review urgently.
In reality, the link in the email is a phishing attempt and members of the public are warned NOT to click on any such links. If any similar email is received it should be forwarded to the RCIPS Financial Crime Investigation Unit at RCIPS.FCU@rcips.ky.
An example of the email is below.
Members of the public are also reminded that domain names on email addresses can be spoofed. This means that even if an email appears to be sent from an address ending in “@rcips.ky” this does not necessarily mean that it actually comes from the RCIPS.
Generally, when contacting members of the public via email, RCIPS staff will sign their name and position at the bottom of the email. The RCIPS also does not distribute case files via email.
Other potential indications that an email is fraudulent (all present in this email) include:
1. Being addressed by an email address and not by name.
2. Frequent typos and grammar mistakes.
3. An oddly formatted signature.
If you have any suspicions about any correspondence purporting to be from the RCIPS, please contact the relevant RCIPS department for confirmation. A list of phone numbers for the various RCIPS departments can be found on our website at www.rcips.ky, towards the bottom of the page.
The RCIPS Financial Crime Investigation Unit can be contacted by phone at 949-8797.