Party Invite Phishing Scams Are the New Missed Connections

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This past April, while attending his nephew’s bar mitzvah on Cape Cod, Eric Umansky woke up to an inbox full of emails from people from his past. They all wanted to know the same thing: Was he actually throwing a party Saturday night?

The New York–based journalist wasn’t sure what party they were referring to, or why random acquaintances he’d met in passing 15 years ago were emailing him. On deadline and already stressed about work, he checked his phone, where more messages inquired about a supposed Paperless Post invite he’d sent for a “Special Private Dinner Party” at 7 pm on May 2.

Except Umansky hadn't sent the invite, and he wasn’t planning to host a party anytime soon.

As it turned out, he was an early victim of an email scam that has since become more widespread. What Umansky didn’t expect was the positive effect it...

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