Security alert: Unit assessment spam email
What occurred
We are aware of a large spam email sent to many Deakin students on Monday, 18 September 2023. The email was designed to encourage students to engage with contract cheating services under the pretext of supporting students with assessment difficulty or needing assistance. This email contains a suspicious QR code and should not be opened.
What does the email look like?
An example of the email subject line is “UNITCODE Final占比60 10.12 提前占坑啦”, and in this example, the email was sent from “Abby [email protected]”.
What steps has Deakin taken
We have blocked this sender’s address from the Deakin network and will continue investigating the incident. We know that students are receiving emails from other email addresses, and we continue monitoring and blocking these emails.
How to stay safe
Be wary of any unsolicited or unexpected communications you receive, and think before you click on emails – these scams can be sophisticated and look legitimate.
- Only scan codes that only come from trusted entities. Pay attention to red flags like the website domain (most Deakin websites have a deakin.edu.au domain).
- If you receive a University-related email you’re unsure about – whether it’s from someone you don’t know, the details appear incorrect, or the email address looks odd – do not click on any links or attachments. Immediately report the email to Deakin’s cybersecurity team via the ‘Phish Alert’ button in your Outlook window or forward the email to [email protected].
- Never give your bank details or money to people you don’t know or for reasons you’re unclear about. This includes your personal, credit card or online account details. If you think your accounts have been accessed illegally, contact your financial institution immediately for advice.
- Be aware of the messages you receive via email, text and social media. If you get junk or spam emails or messages, simply ignore and delete them.
- Look out for requests for payment in unusual methods such as Bitcoin or gift cards – this is a common indicator of dodgy activity.
- Don’t respond straight away, especially if you’re feeling panicked. Always stop to think about a request before you open an email, click or download a link, provide personal information or give money.
If you think you may have fallen for this kind of scam, please contact Student Central for advice.
What you need to know about contract cheating
Commercial contract cheating services offer to:
- sell you essays, assignments, study notes, exams or other assessment materials
- help you study if you upload previous work from your course
- sit exams on your behalf.
It’s not always easy to identify illegal cheating services, but you should avoid any company that offers the above services via social media, email or on-campus advertising. Sometimes, you’ll even see these services promoted on otherwise legitimate study help sites.
Some of these services offer ‘help’ with your work, while others are more explicit and ‘guarantee’ you a high grade. Either way, they’re illegal. It’s a good idea to:
- Block any unsolicited ‘study help’ messages you receive on social media or via email
- reconsider the kind of info you share on your social media networks – for example, a post about the tricky essay you’re writing – as companies trawl for this kind of content and may then target you
- use the strongest possible privacy settings.
If you’ve received an advertisement for contract cheating services in your student inbox, please hit the ‘Report phishing’ button or forward the email to [email protected]. If you know of students at Deakin who are promoting or using contract cheating services, you can raise your concerns with the Student Conduct Team (this can be anonymous).
Stay informed
- Report scams at scamwatch.gov.au, follow @scamwatch_gov on Twitter and subscribe to Scamwatch radar alerts.
- The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s Little black book of scams is an essential tool for recognising scams (available in various languages, including Simplified Chinese).
- Download the Scams Awareness Toolkit to learn more about identifying fraudulent behaviour and scams.