Kansas State University

K-State has been targeted with a new PayPal scam. Scammers are impersonating PayPal and sending fake invoices. Their goal is to trick you into contacting them using the information provided on the invoice. 

If you call the number or send an email, you’ll reach a fake call center. The scammers will claim they can refund the charges but need your credit card or banking information. In some cases, they might convince you to start a remote “help session” to remove nonexistent software from your computer. Once connected, they can blank out your screen and perform malicious activities on your device without your knowledge. Continue reading “Tips to avoid current PayPal scam” →

The latest security concerns for K-Staters are social engineering attacks. Social engineering is when a scammer or con artist gets you to do things you wouldn’t ordinarily do for a stranger.

Social engineering uses influence and persuasion to deceive people by convincing them that the social engineer is someone they are not or by manipulation. As a result, the social engineer is able to take advantage of people to obtain information with or without the use of technology.

The motivation behind most social engineering attacks is to steal a K-Stater’s identity, money, and/or intellectual property. They use the stolen identity to hide their true identity while committing illegal activities.

Sometimes a social engineer may use a K-Stater’s identity to pretend to be a student to take out loans under the victim’s identity. Scammers also aim at getting the victim to divulge sensitive information such as research K-State may be conducting. Continue reading “Cybersecurity Awareness: Social engineering attacks” →