Starting this week, IT Services will send randomized spam tests to faculty and staff. If the employees click a link in a suspicious test email, they will be sent to a training page that educates them on how to recognize spam. If you receive phishing messages, use the Report Message button in Outlook and web Outlook. The message is automatically sent to the security team within IT Services. Reporting also improves the intelligence of our spam filter for the future. 

"We are trying to help people get better at recognizing the tricks malicious actors use in email," said Stephen Tycer, chief information security officer. "You will not get in trouble if you click the wrong thing, but you will have an opportunity to learn a bit more about phishing." 

Phishing is the process of attempting to acquire sensitive information such as usernames, passwords and credit card details by masquerading as a trustworthy entity using bulk email that tries to evade spam filters.

IT Services partners with KnowBe4, a security awareness platform that specializes in simulated phishing attacks to increase awareness of cybersecurity best practices. To learn more about recognizing phishing attempts, visit the IT Service's webpage about phishing and the National Cybersecurity Alliance webpage about phishing. 

Contact the IT Help Desk at help.uark.edu or 479-575-HELP with any questions or concerns.