Dear neighbors,
It has come to my attention that an email was sent out from the address marked as follows:
Either………Highlands of Preston Ridge Homeowners Association
Or………Highlands of Plano Preston Ridge
And reads as follows:
If you want to receive reports of crime in your neighborhood, please click the box below………
When one of the residents in our neighborhood opened the email and clicked on the box, it locked up the computer and had a message regarding encrypting all files. The person then could not access anything on the computer. A close by neighbor who has experience with such intrusions has advised that the next step would be a contact from someone demanding money to unblock the computer. Of course they would want to charge it to a credit card. The neighbor did not pursue that avenue, but did notify a member of the Board of Directors so that the neighborhood would be alerted not to open such an email from either of the above addresses. If you do so, do not click on the box. This incident has been reported to the Plano police department although at this time, they have no way of tracing the origin of the message. I will be in contact with CMA Management Company representative to make them aware of this offense. Any other information that becomes available that is appropriate will be made available to you.
HOA President
Highlands of Plano Preston Homeowners
Email: president@hoppr.org
Reporting Incidents of Crime
To ensure that incidents in our neighborhood are distributed in a timely manner, please email any crime issues you experience to our HOA President. Include your name, telephone number, and email address so he can follow up if needed. Please include your address and a short and concise description of the event.
Thanks for taking the time to report suspicious activity.
Helpful Safety Suggestions
According to Plano Police, vehicular crime have become common in the Plano area, and they encourage people to park vehicles in a locked garage. In those instances where temporarily parking outdoors is necessary, they say parking on the street in a lighted area is safer than parking in the alley.
Suggestions we’ve heard at past Crime Watch presentations:
- Do not leave valuables in your vehicle.
- Install a deadbolt lock just like on your front door. Key or combination, it provides easy access for you and a deterrent to criminals.
- Install a bell on your gate. Even a slight noise in the middle of the night may deter most peepers.
- Install motion sensor lights. They come only when detecting motion but you may get a few false alarms from bunnies in the neighborhood.
- Keep your gates locked. Install motion sensitive lights. Turn on lights before entering a dark area. At the beginning of nightfall, check your windows to ensure your shutters, blinds, and/or curtains or closed.