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What is Phishing?

Answer: 

"Phishing" (pronounced "fishing") refers to a type of attempts to acquire sensitive information.  Phishing is used to steal usernames, passwords, and credit card details (and sometimes, indirectly, money), often for malicious reasons, by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication.  The most common of the communication types is email or text.  Usually it involves the user to click a link in an email or text message and then enter information on a webpage.  Usually, there is no legitimate reason for anyone to request a password/passphrase or other sensitive data via email or text.   and you should never respond to any such message.

What should I do if I think I might have responded to a phishing message?

  1. TAKE A DEEP BREATH.
  2. CHANGE YOUR PASSWORDS.
  3. CONTACT THE ORGANIZATION THAT WAS SPOOFED.
  4. SCAN YOUR COMPUTER FOR VIRUSES.
  5. WATCH OUT FOR WARNING SIGNS OF IDENTITY THEFT.
  6. FILE A REPORT WITH THE FTC.
  7. PROTECT YOURSELF AGAINST FUTURE PHISHING SCHEMES.

Read more about what to do if you were phished. 

Printed from the Office of the Chief Information Officer website on March 27, 2023 at 3:52pm.