Tips and Tricks to Identify Malicious Activities

1. Be cautious of emails from unknown senders.
2. Watch out for emails that use an unusual tone or unfamiliar greeting.
3. Be suspicious of emails asking for personal details, payment information, or research collaboration.
4. Phishing emails often create a sense of urgency or contain threats.
5. Exercise caution with emails that contain attachments or embedded links.
6. Be cautious of attachments with double extensions (e.g., file.pdf.exe) or unusual extensions like .exe, .bat, or.vbs. These files could be malicious software.
7. Always open your browser, search for the specific institution rather than clicking on a URL embedded in an email.
8. If downloading an attachment or clicking a URL redirects you to a website (sometimes a legitimate-looking university site) that prompts for credentials, do not proceed. Immediately report this to Education Commons.

Your computer can be infected with malware, leading to stolen or encrypted sensitive information and potentially acting as an entry point to spread across the network. Following are some factors to identify if your computer has malware:

1. Your computer slows down, crashes, or displays alerts and error messages.
2. Your default search engine changes unexpectedly, or new tabs open that you did not initiate.
3. Your battery drains more quickly than usual.
4. Your files are modified without your knowledge.
5. Your system won't restart or shut down properly.
6. Pop-up ads or warnings on your computer or on specific sites where you usually don’t have ads (e.g., University of Toronto, OISE websites would not have ads).
7. There are unrecognized apps installed on your computer.
8. Your files are locked, or you receive ransom demands.
9. Antivirus software OR Wi-Fi connection is disabled.
10. Spam emails sent from your account.
     

• Carefully check the spelling of website URLs. For example, be aware of sites like goooogle.com, which spoof legitimate sites like google.com.
• Use the following websites to check the reputation of suspicious websites. Any embedded URLs or sites you are skeptical about can be copied (ensure not to click to open them) and their reputation can be checked.
  • VirusTotal
  • Google Safe Browsing
  • FileScan
  • URLVoid