Be Cautious Online Over Labor Day Weekend 2021

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) have issued an alert for possible cyberattacks during the upcoming Labor Day weekend. While there is no specific threats identified, long holiday weekends have been used recently to give malicious actors a head start in exploiting networks and installing ransomware when IT support may be at limited capacity.

Email is a common method by which criminals get their entry point into a targeted organization. Be on the lookout for the following email scams over the weekend:

• An email from the "help desk" advising you that your account is about to expire, your mailbox is almost full, or asking you to click a link to change your password. Never click a link in an email to change your password - you can always change your email (and network password) by logging in to Office 365 from the my.citruscollege.edu portal.
  
  
• An unexpected email from a manager, supervisor, instructor or colleague asking you for your immediate assistance. If you get an unexpected email over the holiday weekend, verify the request by telephone. Pay special attention to the 'from' email address to confirm that it is from a trusted source.
  
  
• An unexpected email with an attachment. Don't open attachments on unsolicited emails, especially those from non-Citrus College email addresses. Attachments can contain malware to capture your credentials and/or install malicious software on your computer.

Learn more about how bad actors can use email to target you at Business Email Compromise: How Criminals Carry Out Scams on the FBI website.

Thank you for your vigilance. It helps us keep our systems safe and secure.

Bob Hughes, forner chief information services officer
Thursday, September 2, 2021