University of Michigan - Flint

Learn what defines spam by reading the "What is Spam" Flyer. 

From: Arnst, Scott
Sent: Thursday, December 15, 2005 11:27 AM
To: Allusers
Subject: Holiday phishing scams

Dear students, faculty and staff,

Given the time of the year, ITS would like to remind everyone to be on the lookout for phishing scams. We have all seen the emails supposedly from some bank, credit union or credit card company asking you to verify your account information by clicking on a link in the email. Under NO circumstances should you click on these links even in the event that you actually have an account with that institution. If there really was a problem with your account, you could easily open a web browser and type the real address to the site (not the fake one included in the email) or by calling the 800 number for the institution. By doing it this way you can verify if there really is an issue with your account without exposing yourself and your account information to scam artists.

Have a safe and happy holiday!

Scott Arnst

Director of ITS

University of Michigan - Flint

From: Storch, Melissa On Behalf Of ITSHelpDesk
Sent: Thursday, June 02, 2005 2:57 PM
To: Allusers
Subject: Be aware of fraudulent emails: *DETECTED* Online User Violation
Importance: High

Dear University of Michigan - Flint users,

Please be aware that the below email message claiming to be from administrator@umflint.edu did not originate from anyone in the ITS department.  If you receive this or an email similar to this, do not click on any links or open any attachments included with the message.  ITS will never send a vague inference of violations with instructions to view an attachment for details.

This is the result of a computer virus on a computer somewhere on the Internet that is spoofing who it is from to try and get you to run the attachment which contains the virus (W32/Mytob.bf@MM ). For more information about email spoofing and phishing, please see our What is Spam flyer located http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/flyers/spam.htm . 

In most cases, our email server automatically removes the infected file, so you should not become infected by using our email system.  However, for new viruses it may take 24 hours or more to be automatically detected by a virus scanner. So, never attempt to open or save these attachments.  Your home email may not automatically remove viruses from attached files.  For more instructions on using Anti-virus Software, please see Quicknote #26 - http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/quicknotes/QN26.htm .

Remember, never attempt to open or save the files attached to suspicious emails.  If you have any questions, please call our ITS HelpDesk at (810) 766-6804 or email at ITSHelpDesk@umflint.edu.

Thank you,
Melissa Storch
Information Technology Services
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: administrator@umflint.edu [mailto:administrator@umflint.edu]
Sent: Thu 6/2/2005 6:38 AM
To: XXXXXXX
Subject: *DETECTED* Online User Violation

We regret to inform you that your account has been suspended due to the violation of our site policy, more info is attached.

From: Maiser@list.flint.umich.edu [mailto:Maiser@list.flint.umich.edu] On Behalf Of Bachman, Gayle
Sent: Tuesday, January 11, 2005 11:15 AM
To: University of Michigan - Flint Faculty and Staff
Subject: Email Scam Alert
Dear Campus Community:

Recently the University of Michigan campuses have experienced receiving email requests by Pay Pal and others, requesting personal banking information under a guise of protecting your checking and/or savings accounts.  DPS recommends that you do not answer these requests, and to notify your personal banking institution.  DPS is presently investigating similar complaints from university employees.  Per the ITS Department, if you receive any unsolicited emails of this type, please go to the following link that will take you to the spam “What-Is” flyer, then click on Spam. 

Thanking you in advance for your assistance and patience in this matter. 

http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/flyers.htm

Director of Public Safety
Chalmers F. Sanders

Gayle Bachman
Administrative Assistant
Department of Public Safety
602 Mill Street
Flint, MI  48502
(810) 762-3335
gbachman@umflint.edu

To University of Michigan-Flint: All Users; All Students
Subject:  Email Spamming and Spoofing
Sent:  Tue 1/27/2004 10:20 AM
From:  Conover, Kathleen

This email will provide new information regarding what UMF-Information Technology Services (ITS) is doing to inform users of: Email Spamming and Email Spoofing.  Email spamming is similar to junk mail and chain letters.  Email spoofing is the practice of changing the "from" field of an email to look like the email came from someone other than the original sender.

Email spamming may be combined with email spoofing, making it very difficult to determine the actual originating email address of the sender.

Some email-distributed viruses use spoofing, such as Klez or Sobig, which took random email names from an infected person’s computer.  Then the original infected computer randomly sent out emails as if they were from those listed in the email address book from the infected person's computer.  So, not only will messages be sent from the email address of the infected computer but also those in the address book on that computer.  Recipients of these viruses are therefore misled as to the address from which they were sent, and may end up complaining to, or alerting the wrong person. As a result, users of uninfected computers may be wrongly informed that they have, and have been distributing a virus.

Information Technology Services has recently enacted even more solutions to reduce spam, and we will continue to offer suggestions for faculty, staff and students to help combat the influx of spam and educate our users on spoofing practices. Although ITS has spam filters on our servers, UMF faculty, staff, and students can further reduce the amount of spam by setting up another Spam Filter on your local computer. For instructions on setting up the UM-Flint Spam Filter, please see the What is Spam flyer - http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/flyers/spam.pdf.  For additional information and resources about Spam, please our Spam website at http://www.umflint.edu/its/spam/.  Please contact the ITS HelpDesk at (810) 766-6804 for additional assistance.

To:  University of Michigan - Flint Faculty and Staff
Subject:  New Spam Filter
Sent:  Wed 10/29/2003 9:14 AM

Every day, millions of people receive dozens of unsolicited email, known as spam. Some users see spam as a minor annoyance, while others are overwhelmed by it. ITS has implemented a new process to help users deal with spam. All incoming mail is now scanned & tagged in an attempt to identify spam. Faculty, staff, and students can cut down the amount of spam they receive by setting up the new Spam Filter. For instructions on setting up the Spam Filter, please see the What is Spam flyer - http://ww2.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/flyers/spam.pdf.  Please contact the ITS HelpDesk at (810) 766-6804 for additional assistance.

*************
Thank you,
ITS HelpDesk
(810) 766-6804
ITSHelpDesk@umflint.edu

To:  allusers
Subject:  UMF Student List Serve Change                                                                       
Sent:  Tue 8/26/2003 4:46 PM

In light of the recent Virus messages that have hit our student list serves, ITS has made a change to the UMF Student Mail Digest list serve (umf_studentsf@list.flint.umich.edu) that is currently in use. Sending email messages to this lists will now be limited to people who are members of the list, also known as subscribed. Detailed directions that provide more information about how to subscribe/unsubscribe from these lists is available online at: http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/support_centers/communication/email/list.htm. This list is considered a voluntary list for students whereby users can elect to be removed from the list at their own request. If you plan to send a message to the Student Mail Digest, you will first need to follow the instructions below to subscribe to it.

Faculty/Staff Instructions for Subscribing to a Voluntary Email List

1. Log into your Outlook email account. (These instructions will not work with the Outlook web.)

2. Address an email message to maiser@list.flint.umich.edu
NOTE: Leave the Subject: line blank.

3. Type in the body of the email message: subscribe (insert email list)
example: subscribe umf_students
NOTE: Don't sign your message or send it with a signature.

4. Verify that your message is formatted as plain text.

5. Send the message. (If it asks you if you want to send the message without a subject, click Yes.)

NOTE: Maiser is an automated program that runs on the server. Therefore, the above syntax must be exact in order for the operation to work correctly. If you have any difficulties, send an e-mail message to postmaster@flint.umich.edu.

Other resources that you might find helpful that are available online are:

SPAM What Is Flyer (provides tips on how to manage SPAM from your personal Outlook account): http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/flyers/spam.htm

Guidelines for Using Umf_Fac_Staff & Happenings Lists: http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/support_centers/communication/email/listserves_guidelines.htm

ITS Quicknote #27 (Guidelines for Maintaining Your Email List Serve): http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/quicknotes/QN27.htm

Please feel free to contact the ITS HelpDesk at 810-766-6804 if you need any assistance using the lists.

Thank you,

Melissa Storch
ITS HelpDesk
766-6804

To:  University of Michigan - Flint Faculty and Staff
Subject:  UMF Email List Changes
Sent:  Mon 3/31/2003 6:58 AM

In light of the recent spam messages that have hit our list serves, on 4/4/03, ITS will be looking to make a change to the two main UMF employee list serves (umf_fac_staff@list.flint.umich.edu and happenings@list.flint.umich.edu) that are currently in use.  Sending email messages to these lists will now be limited to people who are members (also known as subscribed) of the list.  Detailed directions that provide information about how to subscribe/unsubscribe from these lists is available online at:  http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/support_centers/communication/email/list.htm. While both lists are considered voluntary lists whereby users can elect to be removed from the list at their own request, it is important to understand that you may be missing valuable information/updates from your colleagues if you are not subscribed to both lists.

Other resources that you might find helpful that are available online are:

SPAM What Is Flyer (provides tips on how to manage SPAM from your personal Outlook account): http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/flyers/spam.htm

Guidelines for Using Umf_Fac_Staff & Happenings Lists: http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/support_centers/communication/email/listserves_guidelines.htm

ITS Quicknote #27 (Guidelines for Maintaining Your Email List Serve): http://www.umflint.edu/its/helpdesk/quicknotes/QN27.htm

Please feel free to contact the ITS HelpDesk at 810-766-6804 if you need any assistance using the lists.

Mary Deibis

Information Technology Services

http://www.umflint.edu/departments/its/