The Middle District of Alabama has been advised of potential widespread emails scams originating from external sources. Federal courts throughout the nation are reporting that such email scams are currently targeting law firms and federal practitioners.
These email scams are designed to appear to be a communication from a United States District Court. Please review any such communications with caution and act prudently. These emails could contain malicious attachments and/or links.
Please make your firm staff aware of this scam, as well. Many staff members receive emails from the federal and state courts as a “rule” forwarded from the lawyers with whom they work. Some attorneys have received notices from other states including Minnesota, Arkansas, and other districts where they have been admitted.
The Way it Works
A lawyer receives a fraudulent email appearing to be a Notice of Electronic Filing for the Court. The email has a subject line of “NOTICE OF ELECTRONIC FILING [NEF]” with possibly the inclusion of a law firm name. This email is not from the U.S. District Court and is a phishing attempt. Do not click on any links or open any attachments associated with this email. Authentic email from the U.S. District Court will be addressed as “@ [NAME OF SPECIFIC FEDERAL COURT].uscourts.gov.”
It is important to create awareness and remain vigilant about this and other common email scams targeting law firms and practitioners.