increase in fraudulent emails during the holiday season - december 2022
During the holiday season, there is usually an increase in fraudulent emails that impersonate colleagues, particularly senior staff members, asking for favors or giving instructions to carry out urgent transactions.
Often, these emails include messages like “Confirm if you are free. Need you to run a quick request. Get back to me as soon as you can.” Anyone responding to this would receive further emails from the impersonator, usually explaining that they are unable to act themselves for one reason or another and asking the recipient to buy some items on their behalf, usually gift cards.
If you receive such emails and are uncertain about what to do, do not be quick to respond but verify the authenticity of a request before acting on it. If you believe it's a scam, select the three vertical dots in the email and report it as phishing immediately. You can also contact helpdesk@neiu.edu for advice.
Remember that you should never divulge sensitive information to a third party (including colleagues) if it is not required for work, particularly if you have not verified the authenticity of the request. Never provide your account login details to anyone, including your multi-factor passcode or accept an authentication push you did not initiate.
Visit the other information security web pages to learn more about staying safe online at home or work.
We will be providing some holiday-themed awareness messages and posters to remind you of the do’s and don’ts during the holiday season to help you stay secure. Please take time to read and share them with others.
Thank you.
University Technology Services
