Washington State University(WSU) users are asked to be on the lookout for the phishing email below and others like it. The phishing emails, which appear to have been sent by the WSU Helpdesk and claim the recipients' WSU passwords will expire, is a fake and a phishing scam. The fake email messages have links in them that go to a phishing website that steals their WSU account credentials (usernames and passwords).
Once cyber criminals have stolen the WSU account credentials, they will hijack the accounts and use them fraudulently.
A Sample of the WSU HelpDesk Phishing Email
From: Aguiar, Michael Angelo
Sent: Friday, March 17, 2017 11:36 AM
Subject: WSU HELPDESK
Access to your web mail Account is about to expire, please click here to update your account
IT Help-desk
Washington State University
© 2017 outlook Corporation. All rights reserved.
Washington State University (WSU) users who have already been tricked by the phishing email scam, are asked to contact the Washington State University's I.T department for help.
Washington State University (WSU) email users should not click on a link to sign into their accounts, even if the email message appears to have been sent from a legitimate email address. It is recommended that they go directly to www.wsu.edu, click on “Email Login” or “myWSU,” and sign-in from there. Once they have signed into their accounts, they will be able to change their passwords, receive notifications if there is any change to their accounts, or if there is something that needs to be done to their accounts. Or, they can report suspicious email messages to their I.T department.
Signing in from www.wsu.edu is the most effective way Washington State University users can protect themselves against phishing scams and not become victims of cyber crimes.