Phishing / Vishing / Smishing Scams via Email/SMS/Phone Call

Overview

Scammers are always looking for new ways to trick us. These scams can be difficult to detect. Sometimes scammers pose as employers or business associates. They try to gain access to your Lynn username and password, your bank account, or other information.

Definitions

Phishing

The fraudulent practice of sending emails or other messages purporting to be from reputable companies or portraying to be an executive or high ranking position at Lynn University in order to induce individuals to reveal personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers and or engage to complete university business or tasks for them.

Vishing

The fraudulent practice of making phone calls or leaving voice messages purporting to be from reputable companies or portraying to be an executive or high ranking position at Lynn University in order to induce individuals to reveal personal information, such as bank details and credit card numbers and or engage to complete university business or tasks for them.

Smishing

The fraudulent practice of sending text messages purporting to be from reputable companies or portraying to be an executive or high ranking position at Lynn University in order to induce individuals to reveal personal information, such as passwords or credit card numbers and or engage to complete university business or tasks for them.

You will never be asked:

to increase/decrease your mailbox size
to increase/decrease the space on your One Drive or Personal Drive
to validate/verify or confirm your Lynn login information/credentials
to update/validate your direct deposit information
to provide passwords
to update a GoogleDocs or One Drive document not associated with Lynn
to respond to a potential Job

Identifying Phishing / Vishing / Smishing Email Scams:

The person communicating with you is not listed on the https://www.lynn.edu/campus-directory/people website.
The person communicating with you is listed on the organization's website; however, the email address does not match the university's domain name, @lynn.edu.
The person communicating with you is an executive or a high ranking position at the university that you normally do not interact with is asking you for a favor directly via a text/sms on your personal cell phone
The person communicating with you is an executive or a high ranking position at the university that you normally do not interact with is asking you for a favor directly via an email on your personal email address
The person/organization requests your bank account information to deposit large sums of money into your account.
The person/organization sends you checks or money and asks you to buy gift cards in exchange.
There is no face-to-face (virtual or otherwise) communication.
The process is rushed, or the person/organization asks you to rush.
There are spelling errors in the body of the sender's email
Unexpected email attachments
Poor spelling and grammar
Hyperlinks in email
A sender’s address that doesn’t match the name
Request for payment or login information
Threats
Spoofing well-known companies
Too good to be true
The wording is slightly off.
Warnings about your account being shut down
A company logo that looks resized
Threats of legal action
Confirmation of shipment that you didn't order
General salutations, not personalized
Sudden urgency
Inaccuracies

Do's:

Verify the sender of a message and call them on the phone if you have to.
Hover over web page links (URLs) in email messages to see where they link to – beware of URL shortening services (like bit.ly) that may obscure the final website destination.
Be skeptical of messages with odd spelling/grammar, improper logos, or that ask you to upgrade or verify your account.

Don'ts:

Open attachments from unknown senders.
Click on a link from an unknown sender.
Email someone your username or password.
Email an attachment with sensitive university information that is not encrypted.
Click on a link from an unknown or unexpected sender and then enter your Lynn username and password.