Center Point ISD

Should auld ‘phishers’ be forgot,
For auld lang syne!

Every year just about all of us make and try to hold to a New Year’s resolution: saving money, healthier living, learning a new skill/hobby, spending more time with family and friends, ect. Approximately a third of us keep a resolution for at least a month; since life and work generally get in the way, New Year’s resolutions are hard to hold onto. As the new year is here, perhaps we should all attempt a New Year’s resolution which is pretty easy and in the long run keeps us all safe: Recognizing and reporting phishing scams.

Whether these malicious cyber actors hack into merchants’ websites, or send out phishing emails/texts/robo-calls they never stop at getting information from you by the simple click of a link or a reply. If you receive a message from a “legitimate” business requesting payment information, payment updates, or other personal information, do not reply or click the link to go to their website (which is often well designed to mimic a legitimate business website).

Their messages, most of the time, seem innocent.
And other times, their messages try to frighten you into immediately acting to secure your account or divulge information to them.
Again, do not reply to them or click on their link provided.

Key ways to identify a phishing email include:

The sender’s email address looks right, BUT it contains extra characters and/or misspellings;
Misspellings and/or use of bad grammar within either the Subject Line or anywhere in the message body;
Addresses you with generic terms such as “Mr.”, “Ms.”, “Dear Customer,” or “Valued Customer,” instead of by your name;
The message warns that if you do not take immediate action by clicking on the link and entering personal details and/or payment information then you will ‘lose out’;
The message promises refunds, extra coupons, or other freebies after the purchase;

If you are still unsure whether you have received a phishing email/text/phone call do not reply to their message or click on their provided link. Instead, you can search for the company's website through a search engine, and also check to see if there are scams going on under their name. If you determine that it is a malicious cyber actor trying to get you to break this simple New Year’s resolution then do not simply delete the email but report it instead.
By reporting the phishing email it not only pulls the email from your inbox but from others here on campus who may have received it too!