Odd mail message after joining HP support forums

[Shmulik-P]

After registering for the HP support forums a few days ago I received the following e-mall, supposedly from HP helpdesk:

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From: Olivia-Jones
Subject: HP Helpdesk
Note:

Dear Customer,  

Welcome to HP Support Forums!

We appreciate your concern regarding your HP Product. However its hard to provide you the appropriate solution for this issue in community. In order to get easy and hassle free HP Technical support for computer software & peripherals. Kindly call 24*7 for assistance.
+1(800) 318-6034 (US/Canada Toll Free)
+44 (20) 37430591 (United Kingdom)
+33 (1) 85644526 (France)
+41 (43) 2157021 (Switzerland)

Thanks & Regards
    Helpdesk

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...implying that I won't get answers from the forum, so I had better call.

Was this mail really sent from HP support ?

[Paul_Tikkanen · Accepted solution]

Hi:

That is a scam message.

Do not reply to it, or call any of the phone numbers listed.

When you post a question on this forum, no one will ever send you an unsolicited private message to provide assistance.

They will answer your question where it was posted.

Since this forum is peer to peer, it is possible that if no one knows the answer to your question, you will not get an answer.

But those guys are just trying to scam you.

HP and Lithium (the company that manages the forum), are working on ways to prevent these scammers from infiltrating this forum, but there are no easy methods to do this.

[LinnyMac]

I am new to the forum and received the same email today - foolishly I rang them out of desperation to get a new ink cartridge.  They tried to sell me a package to rid my pc of viruses - luckily I just hung up as didn't trust them when I was asking where my ink was!