Fraudulent Emails

Identify thieves often use email spam to fraudulently collect credit card numbers, bank account information, Social Security numbers, passwords, and other sensitive information. Typically, these emails appear to be sent from a seemingly legitimate source. The email might include or point to a Web site that displays a well-known corporate logo. Often such emails pretend to alert you of some account problem that can only be resolved by returning personal information to the message originator. Please be aware that such practices, referred to as ?phishing,? are a fraudulent method to collect personal information. If you receive an email asking to verify or update personal information, it is better to contact the company by telephone ? using a telephone number that you have identified from a source other than the email. Be aware that a corporate logo can be copied and used in a misleading fashion. The campus has received reports of ?phishing? emails with a variety of fictitious alerts. Campus email users are alerted to use caution whenever responding to email requests that ask you to return personal information.