2 Real Examples to Help You Spot an Email Phishing Scam

Posted on: February 21, 2018 | By: Elizabeth Kirkhorn | Filed under: Tech Tips

A person typing on their computer

The dangers of phishing scams hit closer to home than ever last week as Elon faculty and staff members found themselves targeted. As one can note from the screenshots included below, these convincing, yet fraudulent, emails asked faculty and staff to log onto their private Elon accounts. From there, scammers will search for account numbers, login IDs, and other user information. It’s important to learn how you can detect and avoid similar scams.

Check out the emails and annotations below to learn how you can spot a fraudulent email.  (Click the images below to zoom in.)

Be wary of emails with poor grammar as that can be an indicator of a fraudulent email.

A suspicious email sent to Elon faculty and staff.

 

Be sure to check who the sender of an email is. If it's not someone you know, don't open any attachments or click any links.

A second fraudulent email received last week by Elon faculty and staff.

 

How to spot a fraudulent email:

  • Remain wary of emails from senders you don’t recognize, especially if they’re asking you to click a link and log in to a website.
  • Remember that grammatical errors can be a sign that an email is a scam, particularly if the email is from an unknown sender.
  • Be wary of emails regarding any requests that you didn’t make.
  • When in doubt, don’t click on any links or download/open any attachment unless you’re expecting such an email.

If you receive messages with these indicators, you may be a target for phishing. If an email seems questionable, simply delete it and do not open any attachments that may be linked or click on any links within the email. Report any suspicious emails sent to your Elon email account to security@elon.edu.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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