Recent spam outbreak: advice on malicious emails

Some staff have received spam emails appearing to come from University of Kent addresses. The accounts relating to these addresses have not been compromised – spammers have simply faked the ‘from’ field using email addresses they’ve found on the internet.

Note that these messages may try to extract your private information such as username and password or financial details. We take action to block them, and have emailed Kent mailing list owners about how they can prevent spam on their lists, but you still need to be vigilant.

Avoiding email scams

• Never send your password via email: we will never ask you for it. If you have inadvertently done this, change it immediately and inform Helpdesk (contact details below).
• Don’t click on links within emails, unless you’re sure they are from a trusted sender. Links may point to a fake site. It’s safer to manually type the web address you want to visit into a browser.
• Don’t open attachments unless you’re sure they are from a trusted sender.
• If you are suspicious as to whether an email is genuine, contact the Helpdesk.

Known scams

Delete these emails immediately, and any other mail that you are not sure is genuine.

• Emails addressed to 'Kentmail users' and claiming to be sent from 'University of Kent Support Team'.
• Emails asking you to reply with your Kent password.
• Emails with subject lines such as:
  • Storage Limit Exceeded
  • Important Notice
  • Final Notification
  • Mandatory Security Update
  • "Re-set your Mailbox Capacity", from helpdesk(at)webmail.com
  • *****CONFIRM YOUR EMAIL ACCOUNT*****
  • 'Email Account Update Confirmation'
  • ACCOUNT VERIFICATION/UPGRADE
  • Update Your Email-Address
  • CONFIRM YOUR KENT.AC.UK EMAIL ACCOUNT IMMEDIATELY!!!Best wishes,

IT Help and Contacts

https://www.kent.ac.uk/itservices/help/index.html

Contact: helpdesk@kent.ac.uk

Story published at 4:58pm 20 June 2012