FPL warns about new twist to international email scam targeting utility customers

Company is aware of customers and non-customers having received bogus FPL email bills

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Jan 16, 2014, 04:14 ET

JUNO BEACH, Fla., Jan. 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) today announced that it is alerting its customers and others regarding a new twist to an international scam that specifically targets utility customers through email. Both FPL and non-FPL customers have reported receiving bogus FPL email bills. Anyone who receives an FPL email bill and is not an FPL customer should delete these suspicious emails immediately and not click on any links as they may contain malicious spam.

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"If FPL customers receive an FPL email bill that looks different from their normal bill or seems suspicious in any way, do not click any links, delete it immediately," said Marlene Santos, vice president of customer service for FPL. "Our commitment is first and foremost to our customers - we don't want a single person to fall victim to these scams."

Last week, scammers began targeting FPL customers with similar email bills from other legitimate utilities, such as Pacific Gas & Electric and Atmos Energy. FPL customers should delete these emails immediately.

To authenticate an FPL email bill, verify the account number on the email bill with your actual account number. Customers can find their account number by looking at an old bill or by logging in to FPL.com. Also, FPL will never send emails that threaten or require immediate action to provide personal information. The company reminds its customers and others to:

Ignore suspicious requests for personal information such as bank account numbers, user names and passwords, credit card numbers or Social Security numbers
Delete all suspicious emails that require immediate action to verify or demand personal information
Delete any emails from utilities with whom you're not a customer

Additional tips to protect against scams can be found by visiting FPL.com/protect.

If anyone believes they have been victimized by this scam, FPL encourages them to report it online to the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force at stopfraud.gov.

Florida Power & Light Company
Florida Power & Light Company is the largest rate-regulated electric utility in Florida and serves the third-largest number of customers of any electric utility in the United States. FPL serves approximately 4.6 million customer accounts and is a leading Florida employer with approximately 10,000 employees as of year-end 2012. During the five-year period ended December 31, 2012, the company delivered the best service reliability among Florida investor-owned utilities. As of year-end 2012, its typical residential customer bills are the lowest in Florida, and based on data available in July 2012, are about 26 percent below the national average. A clean energy leader, FPL has one of the lowest emissions profiles and one of the leading energy efficiency programs among utilities nationwide. FPL is a subsidiary of Juno Beach, Fla.-based NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE). For more information, visit www.FPL.com.

SOURCE Florida Power & Light Company