Authorities in Monaco are warning residents about a phishing scam involving fake emails sent in the name of Eric Arella, Head of the Public Security Department. These emails falsely claim to involve recipients in legal cases, including accusations of a serious criminal nature, and request a response. The goal is to trick people into giving away sensitive information.

The emails, often poorly written, appear to be sent randomly and come from different email addresses, allowing them to slip past some spam filters. Recipients are urged not to reply or open any attached files. Instead, they should forward the email to cyber@gouv.mc and then delete it permanently.

Monaco’s judicial authorities have confirmed they never send legal summonses by email. Any official correspondence will only come from an address ending in @gouv.mc. People are advised to double-check the sender’s real email address, as scammers often make slight changes to create fake addresses that look genuine.

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