Security Awareness Alert: Phishing Scam Warning

 

Attention Rattler community,

We are seeing an increase in impersonation and phishing attempts aimed at our campus. To keep you and the university safe, please remember these simple but critical rules:

What FAMU will never do by email:

  • Ask you to provide us with your Social Security number, bank account or routing numbers, credit card numbers, or other highly sensitive personal data.
  • Ask you to purchase and ship gift cards for seemingly deserving causes.
  • Send official University business from a gmail.com, yahoo.com, or any personal email account. Official FAMU email comes only from addresses ending in @famu.edu.

How attackers try to trick you

Bad actors use many channels — email, text messages (SMS), phone calls, and social media — and they often try to look convincing. Tactics include:

  • Using an email address that almost matches an official one (look carefully at the domain) from persons who are familiar to you (professors or administrators).
  • Sending messages that create urgency or fear (“act now”, “your account will be closed”).
  • Including links to fake login pages or attachments that install malware.
  • Referencing information from your social media or other public sources to appear legitimate.

Quick safety checks (do these before you click or respond)

  • Check the sender’s full email address — not just the display name. Official FAMU mail = @famu.edu.
  • Hover over links (on a computer) to see the URL before clicking. If it looks suspicious, don’t click.
  • Don’t give sensitive info over email, text, or phone unless you initiated the contact and can verify the recipient by a trusted phone number or in-person.
  • If a message pressures you to act quickly, that’s a red flag — stop and verify.

If you receive a suspicious message

  • Do not click links or download attachments.
  • Do not reply or provide any sensitive information.
  • Forward the message to our cyber security team: phishbowl@famu.edu.

If you already clicked a link or provided information

Immediately contact the ITS Help Desk (850 412 HELP) and law enforcement if appropriate, so that we may help secure your accounts and advise next steps.

Thanks for staying alert and doing your part to protect yourself and our university. Phishing is real! Don’t take the Bait!

When in doubt — don’t click, don’t reply, and report it.