A WATER company has warned customers not to fall for a malicious email containing a virus.

The email purports to be from a water company and Bournemouth Water has received calls from concerned customers.

The company is urging people to delete it and not to open an attachment.

A statement from the company said: “Please be warned a ‘phishing’ email purporting to be from a water company is currently being circulated by malicious parties. This email has not come from Bournemouth Water and we strongly advise customers to delete it.

“The email has been made to look like it’s from United Utilities Scotland and uses the false address ‘uuscotland@uuplc.co.uk’. The word document attached (‘Water Services Invoice’) can install malware once opened and cause serious damage to your computer.

“We’d like to reassure customers we use stringent online security measures to protect our customer data and reiterate this email has not come from us or through our systems.”