1115 Marion Street, Columbia, SC 29201  ·   803-771-7800  ·       Clergy

Episcopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina
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Email scam targets clergy, lay leaders

Diocesan House staff has heard from a number of clergy and lay leaders that they are receiving fraudulent emails that ask for money, gift cards, or other favors posing as Bishop Richards, or other clergy leaders. Please know that Bishop Richards has not sent these emails.

Other dioceses and religious organizations have reported similar incidents in the past. The scheme involves scammers mimicking church staff, typically posing as someone in a position of authority asking victims for money transfers or gift cards. Many times, the scammers will often manipulate the email address, name, or even the area code of phone numbers, so that it appears to be coming from someone you know.

Please note that these recent fraudulent emails have come from a Gmail account ([email protected]). You are able to report it as Gmail abuse here.

The best advice is to confirm requests with a conversation.
Even if the email or text seems legitimate, if a request seems even remotely "off," don't act on it until you confirm it with a phone call or face-to-face conversation. In the case of an alleged message from the Bishop-elect, you may want to reach out to a member of the bishop's staff, using the contact info in the staff directory.

Some general suggestions:

  • Check sender details carefully. Any suspicious emails or text messages should be investigated before replying. Pay attention to the message content, including attachments and URLs.
  • When in doubt, call: If there are questions about any email, do not reply. Instead, pick up the phone and call the main number of your diocesan office or parish.
  • Label it spam: If your email service has the ability, report the email as spam.

Here's how you can report these scams:
  • Report Phishing Attacks: the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team has an Incident Reporting page to report email phishing, as well as an email to forward them to, at https://www.us-cert.gov/report-phishing.
  • Forward all emails to the Anti Phishing Working group at [email protected].
  • Report text scams to the Federal Trade Commission's Complaint Assistant which helps the FTC detect patterns of fraud and abuse.

Diocesan Calendar

Sunday, 4/2 at 2:00 PM
Piedmont Convocation Meeting
Tuesday, 4/4 at 11:00 AM
Chrism Mass: Clergy Reaffirmation of Vows and Luncheon
Friday, 4/14 at 9:00 AM
Commission on the Diocese Regular Meeting
Saturday, 4/15 at 10:00 AM
Commission on Ministry Regular Meeting
Friday, 4/21 at 5:00 PM
New Beginnings
Saturday, 4/29 at 11:00 AM
5th Grade Bridge Retreat
Saturday, 5/6 at 10:00 AM
Diocesan Executive Council Mutual Ministry Review
Saturday, 5/13 at 12:00 AM
Still Hopes and Finlay House Day - loose offerings to these institutions

Piedmont Convocation Meeting

Sunday, April 2, 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM



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Chrism Mass: Clergy Reaffirmation of Vows and Luncheon

Tuesday, April 4, 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM



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Commission on the Diocese Regular Meeting

Friday, April 14, 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM



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Commission on Ministry Regular Meeting

Saturday, April 15, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM



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New Beginnings

Friday, April 21, 5:00 PM - 1:00 PM



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5th Grade Bridge Retreat

Saturday, April 29, 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM



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Diocesan Executive Council Mutual Ministry Review

Saturday, May 6, 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM



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Still Hopes and Finlay House Day - loose offerings to these institutions

Saturday, May 13, 12:00 AM - 12:00 AM

When: Occurs the second Saturday of May effective 5/8/2010 (GMT-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada). Note: The GMT offset above does not reflect daylight saving time adjustments. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

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Episcopal Diocese of
Upper South Carolina

1115 Marion Street
Columbia, SC 29201

Tel: (803) 771-7800

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