A Netflix scam email has been circulating around the internet and has targeted Santa Clarita residents, officials said.

Scammers send an email to the user requesting to update their billing information for Netflix, according to the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station.

The email states the user’s account is on hold or temporarily locked pending verification of current billing information, and invites the user to click on a fraudulent link to update their payment information.

Once the user clicks on the link and provides their personal information, the thieves can open financial accounts to make fraudulent purchases, according to Sheriff’s officials.

Here are additional tips to avoid scammers from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC):

• Check it out. If users have concerns about the email, they should contact the company directly, and look up their phone number or website. A little bit of research can help ensure that it is a real company and not a scammer or a link that will download malware.
• Take a closer look. While some phishing emails look completely legit, bad grammar and spelling can be a tip off to phishing. Other clues can be the user’s name not being mentioned in the email, or the user not even having an account with the company.

In the Netflix example shared by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, the scammer used the British spelling of “Center” (Centre) and used the greeting, “Hi Dear.” Both are not consistent with legitimate Netflix emails. Additionally, listing only an international phone number for a U.S.-based company is also suspicious.

• Report phishing emails. Forward them to [email protected] (an address used by the FTC) and to [email protected] (an address used by the Anti-Phishing Working Group, which includes ISPs, security vendors, financial institutions, and law enforcement agencies).

Users can also report phishing to the FTC at ftc.gov/complaint. Also, let the company or person that was impersonated know about the phishing scheme. For Netflix, forward the message to [email protected]

Ed. Note: This information was provided to KHTS by Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department

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