spam – Page 3 – IT Connect

Web links rewritten by new anti-spam feature

On Tuesday, July 2, SMU implemented a new feature as part of our anti-spam defense to rewrites web links considered questionable, included in inbound emails. The purpose of the rewrite is to prevent phishing and malware scams by forwarding certain web requests to a proxy service for analysis. While some benign links might be overwritten, the service protects against “zero-hour” exploits where the threat could be unknown. If a link is still considered suspect at the time it is clicked, the you will receive a prompt to either decline or proceed to the website in question.

The URL rewrite policy was recently adjusted on Thursday, July 7, and our team will continue to monitor the service to ensure that the policy is neither too lenient, nor too aggressive when rewriting the web links. Please contact the IT Help Desk at help@smu.edu if you have any questions regarding this change.

New Email Phishing Simulations Coming Soon

Phishing attempts are email messages sent by hackers pretending to be your friends, coworkers, or trusted companies. These emails try to lure you to reveal your personal information, such as your passwords, credit card numbers, or bank account numbers, with alarmist sounding messages. Some may even direct you to an official-looking website requesting such information. These websites may also be infected with computer viruses or other forms of malicious software. Phishing messages have potential to damage our IT infrastructure and expose sensitive University data.

Due to the increased volume of recent phishing attempts, SMU’s Information Security Team is launching another round of the phishing awareness program, AntiPhish. This program will send simulated phishing emails, analyze how SMU employees respond to these messages, and track the success of employees in recognizing and deleting phishing emails. For those falling victim to the phishing attempts, the Information Security Team will offer training tools to help employees learn how to avoid falling victim to phishing messages. The phishing simulations will take place at SMU in the coming weeks.

As a reminder, if you receive any email message that appears malicious or asks for confidential personal information, Information Security asks that you do the following:

Contact the IT Help Desk or your local IT Support group regarding the email.
Delete the email from your mailbox without clicking on any hyperlinks or attachments.

For valuable resources and other information, please visit the Information Security website at www.smu.edu/OIT/Infosec.

If you have questions about the upcoming phishing simulation or training tools, please contact the IT Help Desk at 214-768-4357 (HELP).

Thinking of Using SMU Email for Your Marketing? Think Again.

Private Tutor Email
With over 11,000 students available to you through the Outlook address book, you might think this is a great group to market your services or product. They are SMU students. You are an SMU student. You have that natural connection and why wouldn’t they like the bag you designed on Etsy that is perfect for Boulevarding. Or maybe you speak four languages and really could help that struggling student in German – if they only knew you were available. The problem occurs when you click that send button. At that point, your email becomes a violation of SMU policy and that can cause problems for you.

As George Finney, Chief Security Officer at Southern Methodist University, explains, “This is a violation of our bulk email policy and it also uses SMU resources for a commercial venture… As a non-profit, SMU’s tax-exempt status requires us to not allow this.” If you are found in volition, OIT will prevent further email distribution by you, and block access from campus to any 3^rd party email address listed in the message. You basically get marked as a spammer. Also, your account will be reviewed and if further action is warranted, it will be taken.

If you have questions about email policy, please feel free to contact the Help Desk at 214-768-HELP. For more information on University policies, please review the official University Policy Manual at smu.edu/policy.