14 March 2022
Stay phishing safe!
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has warned UK organisations to be more vigilant of phishing emails. Phishing is a type of online attack often used to steal user data.These can be from cyber criminals taking advantage of the current political situation.
For instance, as highlighted by Bitdefender Lab, a cyber security company, cybercriminals have mimicked Act for Peace, Ukraine’s international humanitarian agency. They have asked for crypto donations saying they will help millions of Ukrainians with subject lines such as ‘HELP Ukraine stop the war!’.
Additionally, there has also been a case where attackers claimed to be a wealthy person in Ukraine in need of a place to safely store their money. Once users interact with the email, the attacker will ask for personal bank information to transfer the money and ask to pay administrative fees. Afterwards, the scammer will disappear with the money.
Situations such as war cause strong emotional response and unfortunately, cyber criminals take advantage of this.
Here are a few tips to stay safe:
- Think before you click - especially when the subject lines include ‘urgently’
- Pay attention to the tone or any grammatical mistakes in the email
- If you’re unsure, send the email to phishing@lse.ac.uk and we can check the email for you
- Do not approve multi-factor authentication requests that are not generated by you
- Only donate via official and trusted charities’ websites.
What if you have already clicked on the link?
- If you think you have given your bank credentials away, immediately contact your bank to freeze the account
- If you gave your personal account details, change your password immediately for all your personal accounts.
You can change your LSE password here.