A particular element of cybercrime, Business Email Compromise (BEC) scams, are on the rise and government entities tend to be targeted more often. These scams, sent via email, attempt to deceive their targets into giving money, information, and even material goods by appearing to have valid names and credentials.
Attackers have also focused on gaining access to Office 365 accounts through these email scams.
If your Outlook email account has been compromised you might notice unusual activity such as missing emails, unfamiliar messages, name/email address changes, unauthorized profile, and credential changes, and inability to send emails.
Here is more detailed information on what to do if your email account in Office 365 is compromised.
Overall, these BEC scams are very costly and have resulted in a $2.9 billion loss for victims in 2018.
Since government entities are more prone to an attack, all City of Roseville employees are more likely to be a target of these scams. As was stated in the City’s mandatory cybersecurity training, we should Stop, Look, and Think whenever we are asked to login or download anything through our emails, even if it appears legitimate.
If you notice any indications of suspicious activity from your Outlook email account, contact the IT Security Team.