Scam emails: What they are and how to protect yourself

Whether it be your personal account, a school account or even a work account, scam emails will find a way to get through. These malicious emails can often be quite convincing but identifying them can be crucial if you know what to look for.  

Contributed Photo

Above is an example of an email sent by Greg Price, Chief Technology and Security Officer, following a widespread phishing scam at Troy.

Phishing emails are often designed to steal personal information from the user and may use urgent language to convince users to log in with their email and password. From there, the scammers can gain access to your personal data and financial information, install malware on your device, trick you into sending money, and use your account to continue to trick others. 

“We routinely intercept thousands of phishing messages each day, but occasionally, a campaign slips through filters,” said Troy University’s Chief Technology Officer, Greg Price. “One recent example involved emails claiming students needed to 'verify their login' or 'reset their account' through a fake Troy login page, impersonating the Troy IT department. 

 “Phishing is a problem that affects everyone, not just tech-savvy users. Students are frequent targets because attackers know they’re busy, trusting and often juggling multiple priorities. If something feels 'off,' trust your instincts and verify it.” 

According to Price, there are common red flags to look out for, such as messages seeming urgent or emotional.  

These emails may say that they’re from the university, but they often will not come from a Troy account. Make sure the sender has a domain that has “@troy.edu” in it.  

These emails also may have suspicious links; it’s important to hover over them to check before clicking. The messages may have grammatical errors and strange attachments that ask for personal information, such as your Social Security number.  

However, with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) in everyday life, these factors may become increasingly convincing.  

“New phishing attacks are increasingly using AI, making them far more sophisticated and harder to detect,” said computer science professor and graduate coordinator Suman Kumar. “Unlike older scams, these emails often contain no grammatical errors, font issues, or color inconsistencies.   

“This means you must be especially cautious with unsolicited messages: always check the sender’s email address carefully, hover over links to confirm they lead to official addresses and pay close attention to spelling in URLs. Think twice before clicking any link or downloading any file, and when in doubt, verify the legitimacy of the message through official channels before responding,” 

 Troy University will never ask for personal information via email, nor will it ask for payment in the form of gift cards. If there is an email that seems suspicious, report it and contact the IT department. 

Troy University’s Computer Science program offers courses that contain concepts of identifying and protecting against scam emails. In these courses, students learn how these emails are constructed, what to look out for, and how to protect against these emails.  

If your account is compromised, don’t panic. There are steps to take to regain access and protect your information. 

“If a student falls victim to a scam email, they should immediately contact the university’s IT help desk,” Kumar said. “They should run a full antivirus or malware scan on their devices to detect and remove any malicious software.  

“Additional important steps include stopping all communication with the sender to prevent further exposure, changing the passwords for all accounts, and notifying financial service providers such as banks or credit card companies if they suspect their information has been compromised.” 

With the upcoming semester, it is important to keep a close eye out for these scam emails. If a device or account has been compromised, contact the Troy University IT Department by visiting it.troy.edu or calling 1-334-670-4357.