The Applied technology Dept. has recently received reports that several ACC staff and priests have received emails purporting to be from Archbishop José Gomez, or Vicar General Fr. James Anguiano using gmail accounts to solicit monetary donations or assistance with purchasing gift cards for ACC staff and religious communities.
Archbishop Gomez and Fr. James Anguiano will never contact priests or ACC staff from a personal e-mail address, through text messages, or from a cell phone to solicit donations.
These emails typically use gmail addresses that have a variation of “Archbishop Gomez” or “Fr. James Anguiano” in the email address and display name.
These messages usually contain an urgent request to send money, Amazon, Apple iTunes, or similar gift cards (or pictures of gift card numbers and pin codes) and strict confidentiality. Be suspicious of any email or text message that requests that you to take immediate action, make unusual purchases, and demands secrecy.
These messages also often contain ‘corroborating information,’ reference coworkers or other ACC employees, superiors, and other members of a religious community. This information is often publicly available on the lacatholics.org website or parish websites, and is used by the malicious actor to make the email appear more legitimate.
If you receive any emails from a gmail or other non @la-archdiocese.org email addresses purporting to be from Archbishop Gomez, or Fr. James Anguiano please report it immediately to the Applied Technology Dept. Help Desk email, helpdesk@la-archdiocese.org or by calling 213-637-7699.
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