The UCF Information Security Office (InfoSec) wants to make students aware of increased activity by cyber criminals taking advantage of the current pandemic. Scammers continue to send phishing emails in an effort to steal money, compromise accounts, or distribute malware.
When receiving an email that asks you to take action, closely examine the message. It may be a phishing email if it:
- has unsolicited promises or offers of paid opportunities of working from home;
- offers to send you a check and requests that you wire back a portion of the funds;
- asks you to provide sensitive information such as your bank account, Social Security Number, or other personal information;
- asks you to download an attachment to view important information;
- prompts you to log in to avoid a negative consequence to your account or financial aid.
If you receive a suspicious email, report it to the Security Incident Response Team (SIRT) by forwarding it as an attachment to SIRT@ucf.edu .
Cyber criminals may attempt to send phishing emails from compromised accounts to add a sense of authenticity to their messages. By taking the following actions, you can make it more difficult for scammers to compromise your accounts:
- enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) on your Knights email account. Learn more here: https://ucf.service-now.com/ucfit?id=kb_article&sys_id=949b01b41b5204d026da43f4bd4bcb91
- avoid clicking on links or opening attachments in unexpected emails;
- set a unique, strong password for each account and do not re-use passwords.
To learn more ways to protect yourself online, please visit https://infosec.ucf.edu/awareness/student-security-guidelines/ . If you have any questions, please contact us at infosec@ucf.edu .