Security Alerts and Advisories

  • 3/4/2011 - "Package Delivery Failure"

    • We have recently seen an increase in the number of e-mail targeted at our users. These e-mails are made to look like they came from United Parcel Service (UPS), Federal Express (FedEx), or United States Postal Service (USPS) and they ask you to download an attachment or visit a website to obtain a "waybill", "airbill", "invoice", or "mailing label". These messages are a scam designed to have you download malware.

    These service providers each posted an alert on their sites, advising users that they typically do not send emails, let alone emails with attachments.

    • UPS: http://www.ups.com/content/us/en/resources/ship/fraud_ups_recognize.html
    • FedEx: http://www.fedex.com/us/security/prevent-fraud/index.html
    • USPS: http://www.usps.com/homearea/fraudulent_email.htm

    If you have downloaded one of these attachments or if you have questions please contact User Support Services at 4357 or email helpdesk@longwood.edu.

  • 12/14/2009 - Facebook "fake virus alerts"

Fake virus alert messages are becoming more common. They usually have greater potential for harm on Windows-based computers.  Sometimes they appear while you're surfing the web, but they can also appear during other activities.

Fake virus alerts are frequently designed to look like legitimate warnings, thereby attempting to fool you into clicking inside the alert window -- the very action which can potentially cause your computer to become infected.

Don't click on any part of the "alert" window -- even the parts which don't look like clickable buttons or links. Instead, close all active browser windows using Ctrl+W for Windows and Cmd+W for MAC.

IITS has responded to a number of incidents related to fake virus alerts generated while our users were on Facebook. The Facebook activities ranged from simply viewing pictures on various profiles to playing games.

Here's what users of University owned computers might want to keep in mind:

  • Longwood's licensed antivirus software is named McAfee VirusScan Enterprise and it is installed on every computer.
  • Updates to the McAfee antivirus software are installed automatically on a daily basis.
  • Our McAfee VirusScan Enterprise software will never prompt you for activation.

As always, if you have questions please contact User Support Services at 4357 or email helpdesk@longwood.edu.