See it so you do not click on it.
The signs can be a bit subtle at times, so the first thing is to slow down, take a few seconds and look over the email and think if it looks legit. Here are some tips on how to spot a phish email and not take the bait!
Think about what you see:
- Does it contain an offer that is too good to be true?
- Does it have language that is urgent, alarming, or threatening in any way?
- Is the greeting generic or just plain odd?
- Does it include requests to send personal information or log in with your credentials on a provided link, or asking payment information?
- Does it stress an urgent action to click on unfamiliar hyperlinks or attachments?
- Look closely at the sender’s email address, does it match the company it’s coming from, or should come from?
- Look for emails with bad grammar and misspellings like pavpal.com. or anazon.com for examples
- Is it requesting you to log in with your credentials on a link, asking for payment information or sensitive data?
OK you think you see a phish email now what do you do?
If the email came to your Kent University email address, report it to phish@kent.edu to be analyzed. It is best to report it quickly and if it is a phish, it will be destroyed along with any others like it. So, recognizing and reporting phish not only helps you be safe, but you help others before they possibly take the bait, because they are not yet able to spot a phish.
If the email went to your personal email address, do not do what the email says if you think it might be phishing. Do not click on any links, or don’t even unsubscribe by clicking that unsubscribe link, and do not reply to the email.
REMEMBER: DON’T CLICK ON THE LINKS, JUST REPORT IT AND THEN DELETE IT!
You can take your protection a step further and block the sending address from your email program.