As part of our ongoing commitment to protecting Boston College from cyber threats, Information Technology Services (ITS) has expanded our automated email security capabilities to better safeguard your Google Calendar from malicious calendar phishing scams.
Understanding Calendar Phishing Scams
Cybercriminals increasingly use meeting invitations and calendar events to bypass traditional email filters. Because calendar applications can automatically populate invitations onto your schedule, attackers attempt to exploit this trust by placing malicious links, fraudulent login pages, or scam requests (such as fake job offers or urgent account verifications) directly inside event descriptions or location fields.
Enhanced Automated Protection
To counter this tactic, our email security service now automatically scans and removes malicious calendar invitations across the university. When a calendar invite is identified as a scam, the system automatically removes the event and its associated email from your calendar and inbox, preventing accidental clicks and keeping your calendar secure.
Best Practices for Calendar Safety
While automated security handles the majority of these threats, staying vigilant is essential as some malicious calendar events may sneak through the cracks:
- Be cautious with unexpected invites: Be wary of meeting requests from external or unknown senders that you were not expecting.
- Avoid clicking links in event details: Never click on URL shorteners or unexpected external links embedded within event locations or notes.
- Review the Sender: Check who created the event in the event description. If you do not know the sender, do not engage with the event, and delete it from your calendar. Even if an invite appears to come from a AV研究所 account, but looks suspicious, don鈥檛 click on the links, and use an alternative contact (such as a phone number) to verify the authenticity of the calendar invite.
What to Do If You've Been Targeted
If you think you clicked on a calendar phishing scam link, please contact the IT Security team at security@bc.edu and they will provide you with next steps for protecting your account.