The Los Rios Community College District dispatched mass emails to students and staff on April 17, warning of an email phishing campaign that targeted financial aid, nearly compromising it altogether just after the IT department received verified reports.
In a wide array of phishing emails sent to students, the IT department began receiving reports on April 15, according to ARC Public Information Officer Kaitlyn Collingnon.
The email itself contained misleading information regarding complications around financial aid being distributed to the students’ accounts, advising students to update their BankMobile information.
The email raised concerns due to the email address being sent from compromised Los Rios accounts according to Collingnon. More concerning, the email itself contains an embedded link that takes the user directly to a Google Form, requesting that the student input their student ID number, password, and BankMobile login information, according to Collingnon.
Because such major financial institutions never ask for personal information through an email, it was striking evidence, enough to tell it was a scam.
According to Los Rios’s Chief Strategy and Communications Officer, Gabe Ross, the IT department took the next imperative steps to shut down the campaign by promptly removing the phishing emails from mailboxes, further advising students and employees in the district.
“Prompt action is critical. When the phishing campaign was reported to the IT team, they swiftly suspended the accounts sending the emails,” Ross said. “As fraudulent actors frequently change their tactics, it is necessary for Los Rios to continually evolve detection and mitigation measures.”
As encouraged by Ross, it is essential for students to also take action by taking the time to investigate the contents of an email if they find it to be skeptical. Also, verify before providing personal information to reduce the chances of a phishing attack.
If students, faculty or staff think their Los Rios email account may be vulnerable to a phishing scam, or have received what appears to be a fraudulent email to their Los Rios email address, immediately contact the IT Department help desk at [email protected] and promptly change passwords to all accounts for assurance, as recommended by Ross.
