Scam Alerts

Fraudulent Website/Advance-Fee Scams using EDNY Addresses and Judges' Credentials

This office continues to receive inquiries about fraudulent documents issued by the operator of a fictitious websites/organizations/agencies known variously as the "Department of Interagency Protection Bureau," the "Investments and Securities Recovery Council," the "Foreign Investments Enforcement Division," and the "Security Fraud Detection Authority" (among others). These sites have apparently been scamming their victims through an advance fee scheme using forged documents purporting to have been issued by this court. The scheme has been referred to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. If you receive a document from these scammers, do not send them money and do not entertain their scheme. Report any such activity to the FBI through their Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3.GOV). The domain authorities serving these fraudulent websites have refused to comply with takedown requests or even to answer queries and are in violation of their ICANN contract obligations. This office can offer no more information on these schemes or their perpetrators.

Do not send them any money;

Do not respond to any communication from them, whether it is a letter, phone call, e-mail, or any purported court document;

Do not trust their communications; and

Do not accepted forged emails that purport to be from our domain endorsing the authenticity of any documents sent as part of their fraudulent activity.

Do not trust any communication that directs you away from or cautions you against using official resources, such as PACER.

The Court will NEVER ask for advanced fees to be paid nor will it EVER direct for such fees to be paid.

Fake Notices of Electronic Filing are being sent nationwide

• There has been nationwide reporting of fake Notices of Electronic Filing (NEFs) being sent to attorneys and law firms across the country. These fake NEFs look like they are coming from the Court’s electronic filings system. These fake NEFs are phishing attempts to convince recipients to respond back to the emails. Once a recipient replies to the email, they are sent a follow-up email containing a link to access a document that leads the user to a malicious website. Please take caution when opening emails. If you believe that you have received these fake NEFs, validate cases and case documentation through CM/ECF only, and do not download any attachments or click any links from unofficial or questionable sources.
   
• Notice to the public regarding fraudulent documents and advanced fee scams using the name of this Court and forged documents purported to be from its judges. 

Scammers are Impersonating the U.S. Courts

This office continues to receive inquiries about fraudulent phone calls pretending to be from the U.S. Courts. These callers have been scamming their victims by asking for credit card information, banking
account information, and social security numbers. The scheme has been referred to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. If you receive a phone call from these scammers, do not provide any sensitive information or send them
money. Report any such activity to the FBI through their Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.IC3.GOV. The Court can offer no more information on these schemes or their perpetrators.
Do not send any money to callers claiming to be from the U.S. Courts;
Do not share any credit card information, banking account information, and social security numbers; and
Do not trust their communications.
The Court will NEVER place phone calls asking for credit card information, banking account information, or social security numbers.