Scam Notice

Dear Good Shepherd,

Over the past few days we have received reports that several emails were sent out pretending to be Fr. Hendree and asking for help. These emails are scams, and we wanted to make you aware of the situation.

From time to time, staff emails are spoofed by people who ask for a favor and then ask for money or gift cards. This type of email scam is an attempt to get personal information or money by pretending to be a trustworthy company or individual (in our case Fr. Hendree). These types of attacks have been around for a long time and are becoming increasingly more sophisticated. Many messages can appear to be completely legitimate, but please know that no one on staff will ever send out an email request of this kind.

If something about an email message seems off, even just a little, stop and review it carefully before you reply. Do not open any attachments or click any links. If you’re unsure about a message you’ve received from a clergy person or staff member, please call the church office to verify.

Here are some tips to protect yourself:

  1. If something about an email message seems off, even just a little, stop and review it carefully before you reply. Do not open any attachments or click any links.

  2. Look carefully at the sender’s email address. Hover your mouse over their name to see what email address they used. If the email address is anything other than [name]@gslex.org, do not click anything or respond.

  3. It’s much easier to identify a phishing scam on your computer than your smartphone. If a message seems suspicious, wait to investigate until you’re able to view the email on a computer.

  4. Look out for misspellings and poor/ strange/ uncharacteristic writing overall.

  5. Consider the context of the message. For example, it’s very unlikely that a member of our staff or clergy will ever need anything from you urgently, so if the sender says they need something immediately, especially if they ask you to click a link, log in to a website, or send money, do not click anything. We will never ask you for money outside of a pledge campaign.

If you have any further questions or concerns please contact Lamar Buchanan, Director of Communications, at lamar@gslex.org.