A California university has come under fire for distributing a phishing test that warned all students about a (fake) Ebola outbreak.
The University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC) has sent an email titled “Emergency Notification: Ebola Virus Case on Campus” to all students, which has understandably caused widespread concern.
The email, which has since been withdrawn, warned that a staff member had recently returned from South Africa and tested positive for the Ebola virus. Students were then encouraged to log on to an information page for more details, where the phishing test was revealed.
Phishing test failed
The university has since apologized for the “inappropriate” content of the email. According to the university, the content is not genuine and “inappropriate because it causes unnecessary panic and potentially undermines confidence in public health reporting.”
“We sincerely apologize for this omission.”
Getting the victim to take action is a common tactic in phishing scams. Comments from UCSC students and staff indicate that the message did just that.
“I was out for a walk when I got the email and panicked as it would have been a very serious health situation!! The last thing on my mind is my online safety when I think my colleagues may have been exposed to EBOLA.” user SneakyTurtleGin said in the university’s Reddit community.
Others in the thread weren’t as moved, calling the test an “obvious scam,” noting the sender’s email address and the inclusion of a link in the email. Despite the signs, many agreed that the subject matter of the test was inappropriate.
It is important to note that there has not been a single case of Ebola in South Africa since 1996 and there are currently zero reported cases of the disease in the US.
The university admitted that the nature of the simulation may have “unintentionally spread damaging information about South Africa”, but stressed that the test was part of efforts to improve safety.
Via The register