Learn to spot a phishing message
Phishing is a popular form of cybercrime because of how effective it is. Cybercriminals have been successful using emails, text messages, direct messages on social media, to get people to respond with their personal information. The best defense is awareness and knowing what to look for
We have put together 5 ways you can spot a phishing message and urge you to read these carefully. Also included is a handy document that you can print out for future reference
1) The email is sent from a public email address
No legitimate organisation will send emails from an address that ends ‘@gmail.com’.
Likewise, neither the DVC's nor the Deans will use a Gmail account to communicate with you
2) Mismatched email domains
If the email claims to be from a reputable company, like Microsoft or your bank, but the email is being sent from another email domain like Yahoo.com, or microsoftsupport.ru it's probably a scam. Also be watchful for very subtle misspellings of the legitimate domain name. Like micros0ft.com where the second "o" has been replaced by a 0, or rnicrosoft.com, where the "m" has been replaced by an "r" and a "n". These are common tricks of scammers
3) There are spelling or grammar mistakes
You can often tell if an email is a scam if it contains poor spelling and grammar and is badly written
4) The email includes suspicious attachments or links
If you suspect that an email message is a scam, don't open any links or attachments that you see. Instead, hover your mouse over, but don't click, the link to see if the address matches the link that was typed in the message.
The goal of these attachments is to capture sensitive information, such as login credentials, credit card details, phone numbers and account numbers.
5) The message creates a sense of urgency
Be suspicious of emails that claim you must click, call, or open an attachment immediately. Creating a false sense of urgency is a common trick of phishing attacks and scams. They do that so that you won't think about it too much and simply do what they ask
3) There are spelling or grammar mistakes
You can often tell if an email is a scam if it contains poor spelling and grammar and is badly written
4) The email includes suspicious attachments or links
If you suspect that an email message is a scam, don't open any links or attachments that you see. Instead, hover your mouse over, but don't click, the link to see if the address matches the link that was typed in the message.
The goal of these attachments is to capture sensitive information, such as login credentials, credit card details, phone numbers and account numbers.
5) The message creates a sense of urgency
Be suspicious of emails that claim you must click, call, or open an attachment immediately. Creating a false sense of urgency is a common trick of phishing attacks and scams. They do that so that you won't think about it too much and simply do what they ask
If you have any doubts about an email you receive, rather delete it or contact ServiceDesk on 021 959 2000 / servicedesk@uwc.ac.za