Phishing Schemes Target Writers

t is not altogether uncommon for Aimee Suzara to receive an invitation to speak at a writers conference. The successful Filipino American poet and playwright has performed as a spoken word artist across the country, including at Mount Holyoke College, Stanford University, and the University of Miami. So when she received an e-mail in July from someone purporting to be an employee of a major book publisher, asking her to take part in a virtual conference to “encourage people looking to become new writers,” there was little reason for her to suspect it was anything more than a new opportunity. “I do get invitations to perform or present from people I don’t know,” Suzara says, “so it wasn’t completely out of left field.”