Please be aware of these email scam targeting Gwinnett Technical college students.
Phishing email examples
Phishing emails are deceptive messages that appear to be from legitimate sources. The screenshots below are phishing messages reported to spammail@gwinnetttech.edu by Gwinnett Tech Students. Take a look at these examples so you won't get fooled. The IT department has taken security steps in relation to these messages.
If you receive a suspicious email, please take a screenshot of it and send it to spammail@gwinnetttech.edu
[ Phishing email ] Avoid Now
10/08/24
This email scam urges recipients to verify an Office 365 account or face imminent termination of the account. The email contains document with instructions and a link.
Do not open the document.
Do not go to the link.
The link goes to a google form where they ask for student's log in details including user ID and password.
The Google form has been reported and taken down.
Scams using documents and form links are becoming more common. The school does not send out emails like this. If you get a message like this, it is fake.
The IT department will never send an email asking you for your password.
Microsoft will never send an email asking you for your password.
Another way to tell this message is fake is by looking at the sender. Official messages from the school will be from a @gwinnetttech.edu address. If the message is from a strange-looking Gmail account, it is most likely fake.
Similar message may come from a compromised student account @student.gwinnetttech.edu, watch out for that also. Messages sent from compromised student accounts have been reduced by our recent security steps but it does sometimes happen.
If you receive a similar message please report it spammail@gwinnetttech.edu Click on the links for more details.
BACK TO THE TOP | REPORT A SUSPICIOUS MESSAGE | BACK TO PHISH BOWL
.If you receive a similar message, please take a screenshot of it and report it to spammail@gwinnetttech.edu
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[ Phishing email ] Part Time Work
05/29/24
The body of the message contains no text, only a document. The subject line is Part Time Work.
Similar messages have gone out with other job offer related subject lines such as;
IT'S NOTIFICATION, PROSPECTIVE TEMPORARY EMPLOYMENT, Internship Opportunity, Student Job Advising, Part Time Work, Act Now, Off-Campus Remote Job
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There are several steps to the scam. This is a check fraud employment scam trying to steal money from the victim's bank account.
The scammers will attempt to get students to fill out a form and reveal sensitive information with the promise of a job. The subject line on messages of this type will be related to a job offer and may vary. The link found in the document connects to a google form that looks like a job application.
If you receive an email similar to this,
do not open the document, do not visit the document link.
This email was not sent from Gwinnett Tech.
The document contains a link to a google form that looks like a job application requesting more information. We have obscured the malicious link.
Do not interact with the document, do not fill out the form.
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If the form is filled out, a follow up email will be sent, with details about the fake job, to the personal email entered on the form.
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The message reveals the last part of the scam as follows in the text below taken from the screenshot.
"First Task:
However, your first tasks for this week will be as follows. You will be booking a Hotel/Travel reservation for me for an upcoming event which is taking place this weekend. Further instructions as to how to make the reservations will be forwarded to you before the end of the week. However, the funds to book for the reservation plus your payment for your first task will be sent to you via a cashier's check. Any other task arising will be duly communicated to you also. So I'll need you to be on-time and prompt with your response to my mails.
Your Full Name (First and Last Name) that will be on the Check Payment
Do you have an existing savings/checking account where you will deposit your check? (If YES What's the bank name)
* Re-confirm your present local address for mail delivery.
* Are you familiar with the use of Microsoft Word and Excel?
* Do you know how to initiate a mobile deposit?
* Upload your Resume
* What is your mobile daily deposit limit?"
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The scammers ask about banking information because the victim of the scam is about to be asked to deposit a check into their personal bank account. The scammers may mail a paper check, or send an image of a check through email, asking the victim to deposit it using their mobile banking app.
Either way the check is fake and the bank will ask you to repay the money if you fall victim to the scam.
Do not reveal your bank information, do not deposit the check.
The Federal Trade Commission has details of this scam posted on their website.
FTC - Jobs scams targeted at college students
"Scammers post ads for fake jobs for personal assistants on common job sites and social media. Or they might send emails that look like they’re from someone in your community, like a professor or an office at your college. If you apply, they’ll mail you a check to deposit at your bank. Then, they’ll ask you to send some of the money to another account. They tell you a convincing story, but the check is fake and the whole thing is a scam. The check will eventually bounce and the bank will want you to repay the money you withdrew. Meanwhile, the scammer will have walked away with the money you sent them."
Click this link for more information Check fraud employment scam
If you get a job offer email asking you to deposit a check in your bank account, then pass some of the money on to someone else as part of a job, this is a scam. Be careful.
The check is fake and so is the job. You will be on the hook for the full amount of the check.
BACK TO THE TOP | REPORT A SUSPICIOUS MESSAGE | BACK TO PHISH BOWL
.If you receive a similar message, please take a screenshot of it and report it to spammail@gwinnetttech.edu
[ Phishing email ] PROSPECTIVE TEMPORARY EMPLOYMENT
05/30/24
The body of the message contains no text, only a document. The subject line is PROSPECTIVE TEMPORARY EMPLOYMENT
Similar messages have gone out with other job offer related subject lines such as;
IT'S NOTIFICATION, PROSPECTIVE TEMPORARY EMPLOYMENT, Internship Opportunity, Student Job Advising, Part Time Work, Act Now, Off-Campus Remote Job
.
There are several steps to the scam. This is a check fraud employment scam trying to steal money from the victim's bank account.
The scammers will attempt to get students to fill out a form and reveal sensitive information with the promise of a job. The subject line on messages of this type will be related to a job offer and may vary. The link found in the document connects to a google form that looks like a job application.
If you receive an email similar to this, do not open the document, do not visit the document link. This email was not sent from Gwinnett Tech.
The document contains a link to a google form that looks like a job application requesting more information. We have obscured the malicious link.
Do not interact with the document, do not fill out the form.
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.If the form is filled out, a follow up email will be sent, with details about the fake job, to the personal email entered on the form.
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The message reveals the last part of the scam as follows in the text below taken from the screenshot.
"First Task:
However, your first tasks for this week will be as follows. You will be booking a Hotel/Travel reservation for me for an upcoming event which is taking place this weekend. Further instructions as to how to make the reservations will be forwarded to you before the end of the week. However, the funds to book for the reservation plus your payment for your first task will be sent to you via a cashier's check. Any other task arising will be duly communicated to you also. So I'll need you to be on-time and prompt with your response to my mails.
Your Full Name (First and Last Name) that will be on the Check Payment
Do you have an existing savings/checking account where you will deposit your check? (If YES What's the bank name)
* Re-confirm your present local address for mail delivery.
* Are you familiar with the use of Microsoft Word and Excel?
* Do you know how to initiate a mobile deposit?
* Upload your Resume
* What is your mobile daily deposit limit?"
.
The scammers ask about banking information because the victim of the scam is about to be asked to deposit a check into their personal bank account. The scammers may mail a paper check, or send an image of a check through email, asking the victim to deposit it using their mobile banking app.
Either way the check is fake and the bank will ask you to repay the money if you fall victim to the scam.
Do not reveal your bank information, do not deposit the check.
The Federal Trade Commission has details of this scam posted on their website.
FTC - Jobs scams targeted at college students
"Scammers post ads for fake jobs for personal assistants on common job sites and social media. Or they might send emails that look like they’re from someone in your community, like a professor or an office at your college. If you apply, they’ll mail you a check to deposit at your bank. Then, they’ll ask you to send some of the money to another account. They tell you a convincing story, but the check is fake and the whole thing is a scam. The check will eventually bounce and the bank will want you to repay the money you withdrew. Meanwhile, the scammer will have walked away with the money you sent them."
Click this link for more information Check fraud employment scam
If you get a job offer email asking you to deposit a check in your bank account, then pass some of the money on to someone else as part of a job, this is a scam. Be careful.
The check is fake and so is the job. You will be on the hook for the full amount of the check.
BACK TO THE TOP | REPORT A SUSPICIOUS MESSAGE | BACK TO PHISH BOWL
If you receive a similar message, please take a screenshot of it and report it to spammail@gwinnetttech.edu
[Phishing email ] Attention: Two Different Logins Detected for Office 365 - Take Action Now
5/31/24
This email was sent from a compromised Gwinnett Tech Student email account. The IT department has taken security steps in relation to this messages.
The email claims to be from IT Support and urges recipients to verify an Office 365 account or face imminent termination of the account. The email contains a link to a form where they ask for student's log in details including user ID and password.
Tech Support will never ask you for your password in an email.
Do not give out your password to anyone.
If you receive an email similar to this, do not click on the link and do not enter information into the form.
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The scammers will use information entered in the form to gain access to the student account.
Never share your MFA verification code with anyone
In the screenshot below, the scammers sent the student an SMS impersonating someone from the school, requesting the MFA verification code to gain access their account.
Tech Support will never ask you for your MFA verification code.
No one from the school will ask you for you MFA verification code. This is a sure sign of a scam. Do not respond to messages like these, we recommend using the spam feature on your phone to block the number.
Never give out your verification code.
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If a student reveals their password and verification code, the scammers will then take control of their account.
Do not give out your password, do not give out your verification code.
Anyone who asks you for this information is not from Tech Support.
The form used in this scam asks students for passwords to multiple student accounts and scammers will attempt to gain access to all of them.
The screenshot is a sample of a recent scam of this type.
Do not give out your verification code. If you receive an SMS of this type it is a scammer trying to access your account, block the number. Tech support will never ask you for a verification code.
If you receive a similar message, please take a screenshot of it and report it to spammail@gwinnetttech.edu
BACK TO THE TOP | REPORT A SUSPICIOUS MESSAGE | BACK TO PHISH BOWL
If you receive a similar message, please take a screenshot of it and report it to spammail@gwinnetttech.edu
Reporting suspicious messages helps us purge these messages from the Gwinnett Tech student email system.
Do not open any attachments or click on any links in the suspicious message.
If you have questions please contact the Student Help Desk.
stuhelpdesk@gwinnetttech.edu | 678-226-6407 | Tech Support desk on campus, hours and location
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If you need tech support with anything else please let us know.
You can send us a message, give us a call, or come see us in person in the front lobby in building 100 on the Lawrenceville campus.
Tech Support desk on campus, hours and location.
Thank you
Student Tech Support
Stuhelpdesk@gwinnetttech.edu | 678-226-6407
https://gwinnetttech.edu/helpdesk
Frequently asked questions can also be found on our webpage.