A scam with flashy graphics!

Sometimes phishing attacks are obvious because the contents of the email are clearly not professional. However this is not a reliable way to catch scammers! Today’s Phishing Wall of Shame entry comes from Robyn A., who was savvy enough to sniff out this sophisticated scam. Here’s what it looked like:

This is the most sophisticated email layout we’ve seen so far on the Phishing Wall of Shame series. It’s not perfect, but you can see that it wouldn’t have taken too much more work to make it look perfect.

Never rely on the incompetence of scammers to keep yourself safe!

So how did Robyn know this was a scam? The links that the email encourages users to click don’t lead to a URL that she recognized. When you hover your mouse cursor over a link, your browser shows the URL it leads to. If you expect to see “umb.edu” and don’t, this is a warning sign!

If you are suspicious of a link, website, or email, you can contact the IT department to ask if it may be a scam. Forward a copy of a suspicious email to abuse@umb.edu.

Always remember…

Don’t take the bait! IT will NEVER ask you for your password. Phishing emails attempt to deceive​ you into giving up your private information by leading you to fraudulent websites. Learn more at:
http://www.umb.edu/it/getting_services/security/phishing/