Recently, phishing attempts were sent to target faculty, staff, and students with promises of unsolicited jobs, money, or adverse actions. The Office of Information Technology is resetting compromised student passwords and phasing out older and unsecure email access protocols like SMTP for student accounts that are more susceptible to phishing attempts and allows spam email messages. If you have any questions, please contact the IT Help Desk by submitting a ticket or calling 817-272-2208.
While these procedures and enabled security technology are very effective in these situations, prevention is always the best defense against cyber-attacks and phishing attempts. There are improved methods for faculty, staff, and students to follow that will help protect your accounts:
Students can use these additional steps located here, to secure your account.
Beware of spam from unfamiliar senders or emails that direct you to websites asking for personal information.
UTA will never ask for your password. Do not share it with anyone.
Please change your password frequently and use a different password for each account.
Use anti-virus and anti-malware software with auto updates.
Please make sure your operating system is up-to-date.
The University at Texas at Arlington normally receives thousands of cyber attempts to access confidential data, systems, and services. With real-time monitoring software and technology designed to detect and eliminate vulnerabilities, the Office of Information Technology is able to defend against unauthorized access to systems and services. However, our faculty, staff and students are the first line of defense to preventing unauthorized activity from phishing attempts accessing their account.
