Cybersecurity Blog

New email scam impersonates MRFA president – 06/26/19

The following email showed up in MRU inboxes this week.

There are two things that make this email so convincing. First Melanie’s email address is, in fact, correct.  No, her email wasn’t compromised. It was spoofed.   Second, they name a colleague as the person who will reimburse you. A nice touch actually.  With such a convincing email, how the heck are you supposed to know this is a scam? Well, there are a few tells.

First off, the grammar is rather crappy. Not what you would expect from the president of the MRFA. Second, if you try calling Melanie to confirm she sent the email, you get a phone message saying the MRFA office is closed and she isn’t returning messages.  If the office is closed, why would she be sending money to vendors? Third there is a sense of urgency. The email says the money needs to be transferred today. Lastly, she is asking you to take money from your personal account. That is a HUGE red flag. Why on earth would she ask you to take money from your personal account to pay a vendor? Nothing makes sense in this email except the email address and name dropping.

The best way to protect yourself from this type of a scam, is to go slow and question everything. If something doesn’t add up, call the email sender to confirm that they sent the message. If you aren’t sure you can forward the message to abuse@mtroyal.ca and we will take a look at it for you.

That is just what Megan did. Thanks to her quick actions, we were able to track down those who received this message, notify them it was a scam and stop the attack in its tracks. Way to go Megan, you are a superhero!! Be a superhero like Megan, report malicious emails to abuse@mtroyal.ca and help protect your colleagues from scammers and hackers.

For Megans efforts, she will be receiving  a commitment sticker. Want your own sticker? Report an malicious email to abuse@mtroyal.ca or come down to see me on Main Street on August 20th from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.  Pick up your sticker and spin the prize wheel to win cool swag.

 

 

 

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