Pay Pal appears to be the most frequently "faked" site for this scam, but there have been reports of similar fake messages claiming to be from a number of other sites.

Amazon, MSN, EBay, Borders, and a fairly long list of web merchandise sites have reported complaints.

Obviously, if you provide the information requested, you can expect to have your account(s) "cleaned" immediately.

This is similar to the telephone scam where someone calls to tell you that your "payment is past due," and offers to debit your checking account to get it current "if you'll give them the account number." The favorite here is probably your gasoline credit card account, although telephone bills are also "hit" occasionally.

NEVER give any personal information to anyone who originates a contact. You have no way of verifying that they are "who they say the are." Hang up, disconnect, delete, and initiate your own connection (web, phone, or snail mail) with the people who claim to need information, if necessary.

John