Information Security
Phishing Emails
If you receive a message you suspect as phishing, do not respond by providing information, clicking on any provided links or calling any provided phone numbers. It is recommended that you delete the message. Mark as phishing in Outlook web and client versions.
Reporting Suspicious Emails
Have you received an email that you suspect is fraudulent? Follow the steps below to report it to the MIU IT Department!
- Do NOT respond or click on any of the links in the message
- Submit helpdesk ticket with screen shot of email to IT Help Desk Ticket Portal
- Delete the message from your Inbox
Should the MIU IT Department discover that the email is fraudulent and being sent to a broad base of MIU account holders and/or known victims, an MIU Fraud Notification message will be sent to campus that will include a warning and more information about the message. Otherwise, the individual reporting the suspicious email may receive a direct message back from the MIU email administrators.
**If you believe you have fallen victim to a phishing email, MIU IT Department recommends that you immediately log in to the MIU O365 and change your password.
Phishing Warning Signs/Scams
Attackers often send a large number of messages at once. They may have your email address but often do not have your name. Be suspicious of any messages you receive with a generic greeting such as “Dear Customer” or “Attention Account Holder”.
Spelling mistakes and poor grammar
Any legitimate organization will proofread emails prior to sending. Although a professional looking document with no grammar or spelling mistakes may still be a scam, any email from a professional company with multiple grammar and spelling errors is not legitimate.
Example: An email claiming to be from Capital One bank is a scam if it is full of grammar and spelling mistakes.
Unexpected, urgent action required
Be suspicious of unsolicited email messages from individuals that attempt to create a sense of urgency by claiming things such as “your account will be deactivated” or “your account has been compromised”. The attacker is attempting to take advantage of your concern and trick you in to providing confidential information.
***MIU System Administrators will never send you an email and ask you to validate your account.***
-Does the sender claim to be from MIU but the email address ends in something other than @miu.edu?
-Does the sender appear to be using a legitimate MUM\MIU account but is not one that you recognize such as “Technology Support Center”.
-Email accounts can be compromised or the sending address can be impersonated even without gaining access to the email account. Does the message come from someone you do recognize, but the content of the message seems out of character for that person?
Be very cautious of links in messages you receive
-If you hover, but do not click, the link, does it show a URL with a domain name that ends in msu.edu? (e.g. https://mail.mum.msu/ instead of https://miu.edu.weebly.com/) If you do receive an email with a link similar to this the message can be forwarded to emailadmin@miu.edu to have someone confirm whether or not it was sent by MIU.
-Attackers will sometimes include authentic links along with fake links, such as a genuine privacy policy link. This is done to make the message appear more realistic.
Work from home scams
- Unsolicited email offering to pay you a certain amount, such as $300/day, to work from home.
- You receive a check and the sender asks you to deposit it and forward money in any way. This is an attempt to steal your money. Fraudulent employers may ask you to do this as a part of an application process or a test before they will hire you. Do not send any money no matter what they tell you. You could be held personally responsible for any forged checks, wire transfers, or illegal money transfers that you handled.
- You are asked to receive packages then reship elsewhere. The packaged items have probably been obtained illegally, and the scammers are using you to make the shipping address appear local. Participation could be viewed as aiding fraud.
- You are asked for an up-front payment before you can get the job. Most likely there is no job, the scammers are just attempting just to take your money.
- You are hired without an interview. It is not a common practice for any employer to hire someone after a simple email correspondence or exchange of contact information.