Beware of scam emails targeting lawyers
Scammers are still on the prowl, and this time, they almost caught a Miami lawyer in their trap.
The attorney, who specializes in real estate and is also a title agent, recently contacted the Bar to report a convincing email that appeared to come from Manatee County Government, offering a legal consulting opportunity. But a closer look revealed the email was part of a sophisticated scam designed to install harmful software.
While the email seemed professional at first, the lawyer later discovered subtle red flags, including an odd email address and a small grammatical mistake. After responding and downloading a ZIP file containing what the scammer claimed was a vendor registration form, the lawyer’s security software, Microsoft Defender, flagged the file as a Trojan virus, stopping it just in time.
“The interaction felt real, but thankfully I caught it before anything could happen,” the lawyer said.
The scammer’s email contained a small but telling grammatical error in the opening line and an unusual email address: “[email protected],” which misspelled “Manatee” with two “n’s” instead of one.
This serves as a reminder that scammers don’t just target businesses — they’re going after lawyers, too.
The lawyer is sharing her experience to warn other legal professionals to stay vigilant. Scammers continue to target the legal community, and lawyers should be cautious of unsolicited emails, especially those with attachments or links to unfamiliar websites.
For tips on how to protect yourself from scams, visit The Practice Resource Center of The Florida Bar, which offers resources to help lawyers recognize and avoid falling victim to scams.
