Smith College COVID-19 Email Phishing Alert, March 30, 2020

Smith College COVID-19 Email Phishing Alert, March 30, 2020

Dear students, staff and faculty:

With regret, we write to make you aware of a recent increase in email phishing around COVID-19. (Phishing is an email that attempts to gain personal or financial information, often through infecting your personal computer with a virus).

The current phishing campaigns take the form of an email to tell you that you are connected to someone who has received a positive COVID-19 diagnosis. The email includes an attachment that you are instructed to download and take to the nearest medical facility (or your personal physician). The attachment is infected with malware and will infect your computer.

Please know that Schacht Center staff and campus police are the only Smith groups authorized to inform you of the status of COVID-19 cases on campus, and the Schacht Center will not send you attachments. Please use extra caution with email and email attachments around COVID-19 during these challenging times.

Sincerely,

Tara Dumont, MD
College Physician

Samantha Earp
Vice President for Information Technology & Chief Information Officer