A BOKU professor is asking you to buy Apple gift cards?

Doesn't that seem strange to you?

  • Look out for the following characteristics:
    • Short subject, e.g., “Are you available?” and “Urgent favor”, and a short message to bypass spam/phishing filters
    • Impersonating someone in a position auf authority.
    • An unpleasant sense of urgency is created.
    • The sender clains to be unavailable to talk or clarify.
    • The sender's address does NOT match the usual address of the person the sender is pretending to be.
    • The reply address is different from the sender's address.
  • Again: Always pay attention to the actual sender address (not the name).
  • Trust your intuition.
  • f you find something strange, take your time.
  • Are you hesitant to inquire directly by phone? That is understandable.
    However, perhaps you can reach the respective secretary?
  • You can always consult the BOKU IT hotline: https://short.boku.ac.at/it-hotline-en
  • Find out about current phishing waves at BOKU: https://short.boku.ac.at/it-phishing-en
  • If you think someone's email account has been hacked, it's not a good idea to inform that person by email. It's better to contact BOKU IT.
  • Never pass on gift card codes. You will never see your money again.
  • Familiarize yourself with the basic patterns of social engineering and phishing.
    Once you understand the patterns, it is relatively easy to recognize new variants:
  • Employees: Take the self-test on information security in the BOKU training pass:
    https://learn.boku.ac.at/mod/h5pactivity/view.php?id=1930107 

Always pay attention to the actual sender address!