email scam

[/ˈiːmeɪl skæm/]
nounpl: email scams
golpe por email
1. a fraudulent scheme conducted through email to deceive someone into revealing personal information, sending money, or downloading malware
She received an email scam pretending to be from her bank asking for her account credentials.
Ela recebeu um golpe por email fingindo ser do seu banco pedindo suas credenciais de conta.
2. a deceptive email message designed to trick recipients into performing actions that benefit the scammer
The email scam claimed he had won a lottery prize and needed to pay processing fees.
O golpe por email afirmava que ele tinha ganho um prêmio da loteria e precisava pagar taxas de processamento.
Email scams are increasingly prevalent in both Brazil and the USA. In Brazilian Portuguese, 'golpe por email' is the standard term, while Brazilians are commonly targeted by variants like 'golpe da herança' (inheritance scam) and 'golpe do príncipe nigeriano' (Nigerian prince scam). In the USA, awareness campaigns about email scams have become part of mainstream cybersecurity culture, particularly targeting seniors and uninformed users.
NYC Slang
email hustle, phishing scheme
Synonyms / Sinônimos
phishing scamemail fraudemail phishingconfidence schemeadvance-fee fraud

Regional Variations

General Brazilian
golpe por email
most common and standard term
General Brazilian
fraude eletrônica
broader term for electronic fraud
Rio de Janeiro
golpe do email
casual variant with definite article
São Paulo
esquema fraudulento por email
more formal business usage
Portugal
burla por email
Portuguese prefers 'burla' instead of 'golpe'

Related Words

phishingmalwarecybercrimeidentity theftNigerian prince scamspoofing

Related Idioms & Phrases

fall for an email scam
get scammed via email
spot an email scam
report an email scam
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