Hurricane Harvey Phishing Scams
US-CERT warns users to remain vigilant for malicious cyber activity seeking to capitalize on interest in Hurricane Harvey. Users are advised to exercise caution in handling any email with subject line, attachments, or hyperlinks related to Hurricane Harvey, even if it appears to originate from a trusted source. Fraudulent emails will often contain links or attachments that direct users to phishing or malware-infected websites. Emails requesting donations from duplicitous charitable organizations commonly appear after major natural disasters.
US-CERT encourages users and administrators to use caution when encountering these types of email messages and take the following preventative measures to protect themselves from phishing scams and malware campaigns:
• Do not follow unsolicited web links in email messages.
• Use caution when opening email attachments.
• Keep antivirus and other computer software up-to-date.
• Review the Federal Trade Commission information on Charity Scams.
• Verify the legitimacy of any email solicitation by contacting the organization directly through a trusted contact number. You can find trusted contact information for many charities on the BBB National Charity Report Index.
In addition:
· Please follow the safe email practices found at www.odu.edu/cybersecurity .
· Report suspected phishing emails by forwarding the email to phishing@odu.edu .
· Contact the ITS Help Desk if you accidentally click on a suspicious link or think you might have been infected with malware (http://www.odu.edu/ts/helpdesk ).
· Remember: ODU will NEVER ask for your password by email or over the phone.
Stay safe online!
J. Douglas Streit, CISSP
Chief Information Security Officer
Old Dominion University
http://www.odu.edu/directory/people/j/jstreit
Posted By: John Streit
Date: Tue Sep 05 07:45:09 EDT 2017