Everyone Thinks This Target Email Is A Scam

Millions of people have gotten a suspicious email from Target in the last couple days informing them that their personal information may have been stolen in the recent data breach.

The email offers customers a year of free credit monitoring through Experian, which includes identity theft insurance.

That sounds great, except no one trusts that the email is actually from Target. Here's why:

1. The email is from this sketchy address: TargetNews@target.bfi0.com. It's a common practice for scammers to use a company's name in front of their own domain, which often contains inexplicable characters like "bfi0."

Email purportedly from @Target sure feels like another scam. Sent from TargetNews@target.bfi0.com. Don't trust it. pic.twitter.com/QrLnJoMNd9

- Jim St. Leger (@intel_jim) January 16, 2014

Got email from @target RE free ident monitoring. Don't remember giving them my addy. Came from http://t.co/tXkNRkuBYP. I smell fishing scam.

- MW (@DadBoiler) January 16, 2014

2. Consumers' perception of Target has plunged in recent weeks as a result of the data breach, as we reported last week.

Maybe during a major credit card scam, target shouldn't send out an email that says something to the effect of "click this link!"

- Katie (@auburnkt) January 16, 2014

Thanks for the sketchy, scam-like email Target. You could have done better. Bullseye wasn't even in it.

- Meghan S. Holihan (@_mshola) January 16, 2014

@Target is this an email scam? Hackers have over 140 million customers financial info. Why should I trust Target? #wateringholeattack

- Doug (@dbonham) January 15, 2014

3. Many of the people receiving the email didn't shop at Target during the data breach. Some haven't even shopped there in years.

Did everyone just get that Target email? I didn't shop during the data breach but they just said my info may have been hacked...great

- Hadas Gold (@Hadas_Gold) January 15, 2014

Just got an email from @Target that my information was potentially compromised, I didn't shop in a store...what was hacked now???

- David Dixon (@golfddd) January 15, 2014

But this particular email is actually legitimate, as is the domain and the offer of a year of free credit monitoring.

The reason why some people are getting the email who haven't shopped there recently is because the hackers may have stolen personal information that the retailer had on file, including names, mailing addresses, phone numbers and email addresses.

The retailer could have retained that information from a purchase you made many years ago.

Here's a copy of the email: