If Your Calendar Says, “Pay Now,” Pause First
Security
Scammers are constantly finding new ways to make fraudulent messages look real. A growing tactic targets something most of us trust every day: our digital calendars.
How it works: Scammers exploit calendar settings that automatically add events from emails, shared links, or subscriptions. The fraudulent event may:
- Claim that a payment is due or overdue.
- Use official-sounding language or logos.
- Include links or phone numbers for “billing support.”
- Pressure you to act quickly to avoid penalties, data loss, or account closure.
If you click on the invite, you will likely be directed to a fake website or connected to someone pretending to represent a real company.
How to protect yourself
Reduce your risk by taking a few simple steps:
- Adjust your calendar settings. In your calendar app, disable automatic calendar invitations or events from unknown senders.
- Don’t click calendar links for payments. Legitimate companies, including Harborstone, will not demand payment through calendar notifications.
- Verify independently. If you see a reminder about a bill, go directly to the organization’s official website or app or call a trusted phone number (not the one listed in the calendar event).
- Delete suspicious events. Remove any questionable calendar items, and don’t click or call any links or phone numbers in them.
- Report it. If the scam references Harborstone, please let us know so we can help protect you and other members.
When in doubt, pause and verify before taking action.
Learn more
You can learn more about this topic in an article that the Berkeley Lab posted, which includes examples of fake calendar events. Note that the principles that the article covers apply generally to any type of digital calendar, not just Google calendar.
