Senate Approves Anti-Phishing Bill

The State Senate has given unanimous approval to a bill targeting Internet ''phishing." House bill 2473, by Sen. Glenn Coffee, R-Oklahoma City, and Rep. Fred Perry, R-Tulsa, would outlaw the increasingly common scam in Oklahoma.

"When we say we're against phishing, we're not talking about the fishing you do at the lake," explained Coffee. "Phishing is a scam used by identity thieves to lure Internet users into providing financial and personal information."

The most common form of phishing involves the sending of an email that looks as though it was sent from a legitimate source, such as E-bay, Citibank, or other businesses.

"People get these messages that say something to the effect that someone may have been using their account without authorization or that they need to update their files," Coffee explained. "Those who respond to what they believe is a legitimate inquiry are then asked to provide key information such as account numbers and social security numbers. That information is then used by the phisher to commit identity theft. HB 2473 would make it illegal to send such fraudulent messages in the first place."

The next stop for HB 2473 will be the Governor's desk.