Tips for Identifying Spam

This article has some tips for identifying spam mail. While our staff and faculty undergo security training via Mimecast which further outlines security risks, these are the basics of identifying spam emails.

NO legitimate email will EVER ask for your username/password/personal information. That information is stored in the databases of the institutions. Never give out your username or password to an email address.
Just because you know the sender does not mean you can trust the email. Many email addresses are either hijacked or spoofed [spoofing is the process of pretending to be an email sent from one email address when in reality it is sent from a different address.] If there is anything suspicious about an email sent by somebody you know, compose a new email (do not hit reply) and verify the authenticity of the email.
Beware of emails that attempt to scare or intimidate you into responding. Legitimate emails will abide by professional courtesy. Many spam frauds use fear to keep you from thinking rationally.