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Watch out for 'Update Your UCDavis Webmail Account' email hoax
05/16/2012
A new phishing scam is causing enough confusion at UC Davis to require a special warning.
The email message, "Update Your UCDavis Webmail Account," pretends to come from "itshelp@ucdavis.edu" and asks recipients to click on a non-UC Davis web address, www3.telus.net/public/lizmunro/ucdavis.htm.
It is a complete fraud.
If you receive the message, delete it. If you have already gone to the website and entered your UC Davis user name and passphrase, your account has been compromised, and you need to change your passphrase and challenge questions immediately. (Challenge questions, such as the name of the first school you attended, help you set a new passphrase.)
For instructions on changing your passphrase, call the IT Express Computing Services Help Desk at 530-754-HELP (4357) or go to passphrase.ucdavis.edu.
Phishing scams, which seek to steal your private information, typically ask you to send or "confirm" sensitive information like a login ID, passphrase, or account numbers. The messages often threaten to close or restrict your account if you don't respond. Phishing scams are common, although most are blocked by spam filters and other security measures.
UC Davis will never ask you to disclose your passphrase via email or telephone. If you ever doubt the authenticity of a message that claims to come from UC Davis, call IT Express for guidance. It is open weekdays, except holidays, from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
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