University's email blacklisted after spammers hijack student accounts
The University of Illinois has had its email domain blacklisted by some providers after phishing scammers managed to compromise the email accounts of a sizable number of students and staff in a short period of time, the institution has said.
According to a warning posted to the Campus Information and Educational Services (CITES) website, the initial assessment was that the accounts of at least 36 people had been hacked during the attacks but that the true number was probably much higher.
The phishers used the common tactic of warning users that they should enter their account details on a bogus site to avoid having email blocked, snaring many unwary users. Other emails appeared to be from banks.