Spark warns of scam email bill

Spark is warning customers of a new scam doing the rounds.

The email purports to be from Spark and encourages people to pay their “bill”.

“We are aware that there is a scam email circulating, impersonating Spark and requesting people to pay their outstanding balance on their Spark bill via a ‘Pay Now’ option,” a Spark spokeswoman said.

“However, this is not a legitimate communication from Spark and we strongly encourage customers not to click on any links in the email and to delete it immediately.”

The Herald received an example of the email from Mysparksupport@spark.co.nz.

The email uses Spark logos, but is not from the telecommunications company.

“Our security team is investigating and customers are advised to check My Spark or the My Spark App to see whether they have an outstanding balance due,” the spokeswoman said.

“We are sorry for the inconvenience and confusion that this may have caused. Spark plays an active role in limiting the number of scam communications out there, but it’s not always possible to detect scam activity so we ask our customers to let us know when they have received a scam that differs to the ones listed on our scam alerts page.

“In this instance, we have updated the scams section on our website to alert customers about this current scam and a proactive post will be going out via social media shortly.”

What to look for if you’re unsure whether you’ve received a scam bill

■ The due date on the Spark bill will always be approximately 14 days from the receipt of the bill. In this instance, the due date is one day, away which indicates that it is not genuine

■ The account number will always be your account number. If the number is different from your account number, then this would indicate it is not genuine

■ The amount owing will always match the amount shown on your Spark App/myspark. If the amount varies, then this indicates that the bill is not genuine — NZ Herald