"Phishing" continues to be a real problem online, especially in e-mail.

It's estimated that millions of users receive these phony e-mails daily — and some of them succumb to the scams and find their identities have been stolen.

These e-mails appear to be from your bank or credit card company, and usually warn there is some problem with your account. You are given the URL in the e-mail and, if you click on it, you will be taken to a Web site that may appear to be official. But the site is bogus and — if you give out personal information — the creators of the phishing e-mail and the Web site can use it to steal your identity and, eventually, your money.

Another scam comes from e-mails that appear to be from an eBay user who is taking issue with some product allegedly found on the famous bidding site. It asks you to provide information and, when you click on the embedded URL that says it's an eBay address, you're taken to a phony site where you are asked to provide your eBay user ID and password. Once the creator of the phony site and e-mail has that information, it can be used to steal your eBay account and, if there is a PayPal account linked to it, the scammer has access to that as well.

Always look at any e-mail as suspicious. And never respond to an e-mail that appears to come from your bank or any of the companies that issue you credit cards.

Sometimes the e-mail threatens to close your account, report you to the credit bureau or other serious actions.

The fact is that no bank or credit card company will use an e-mail with an embedded Web site to report that information to you. And, if there's a telephone number listed in the e-mail, don't call that either. If you want to put your mind at ease, call the number listed on your bank or credit card statement to check your account.

Some scam e-mails offer to sell you something at a bargain price by clicking on an embedded Web site address.

Don't do it. If the e-mail comes from a known department store, type in the store's URL yourself instead of using the one in the e-mail. If it doesn't come from a seller with whom you are familiar, be very suspicious.

Some of these e-mails are extremely threatening or worrisome. If so, report it to the Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov/complaint.

If you slip up and provide any of your personal information, account numbers or PINs, you should immediately contact your bank or credit card company and make arrangements to protect your finances. These companies are familiar with phishing scams and know how to respond.

You can get more information about ID theft and phishing at the Federal Trade Commission's Bureau of Consumer Protection Web site at www.ftc.gov/bcp.

List of over-used words

Since 1976, Lake Superior State University has been publishing an annual list of words that should be banished for "misuse, over-use and general uselessness." The 2007 list is out and you'll find it at lssu.edu/banished. This year's list includes "material breach," "must-see TV," "weapons of mass destruction," and many more, along with the reasons they should be banished.

Test your geography skills

They say Americans are not the best when it comes to knowing world geography. Test your geography skills on this Web site at www.triviaplaza.com/geo.htm. You'll find sections of quizzes for nearly all the different regions of the world — Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania. There are quizzes based on cities, capitals, flags and even shapes of countries.

Cancer pain management

The Association of Online Cancer Resources offers a site about cancer pain and its treatment at www.Cancer-pain.org. Studies have shown that cancer pain remains underreported and under-treated. This site offers information to assist in pain management decisions by offering the latest developments in cancer pain treatment to cancer patients, caregivers and the medical professionals who treat them.

—Find something online you think others should know about? Or do you have a question? Let Dave Peyton know. His e-mail address is davepeyton@davepeyton.com. Distributed by Tribune Media Services.