The following is an e-mail that was sent to all Bank One employees from their IT security department:

This week several Bank One employees reported receiving an email from PayPal, the online payment service, claiming to need an update of personal information and threatening to shut down individual's accounts if the information is not given. The e-mail is phony and should not be taken seriously. Following the instructions of the e-mail puts both Bank One and the individual employee at risk.

Here's what the PayPal Web site has to say:

"Recently, fraudulent PayPal emails have been circulating that request personal information or ask you to download an attachment. These emails are not from PayPal and responding to them may put your account at risk."

This request for information via e-mail is an example of the latest scam undertaken by computer criminals. It's called "phishing" and here's how it works: You receive an e-mail that appears to be from a legitimate company, say eBay, PayPal or even Bank One. It has the company logo, and might even be designed to look like the real Web site. The e-mail asks for personal information such as your account number, PIN number or password. It directs you to click on an authentic-looking link to submit your information. But when you click on that link, you're actually going to a criminal's Web page, where he or she now has access to your information.

Make sure you're not a victim of these scams. Don't reply to e-mails requesting personal information. Legitimate companies, including Bank One, don't ask for personal data via e-mail. If you have questions about your account, you should call the company, or start with a clean Web browser and type in a known company address. Don't use the links provided in the e-mail. [my emphasis]

Thanks MB!