University of Pennsylvania Students Face Disparaging Scam Email, Claims University; Investigation Underway
A malicious email making disparaging claims against the University of Pennsylvania has been sent to students and alumni, with the university confirming it is a fake. The email, which was shared on social media platforms, appeared to come from the Graduate School of Education's emails but was actually created by hackers.
The message contained derogatory language toward Penn, labeling the university "elitist" and urging recipients not to donate. A subject line that read "We got hacked (Action Required)" added to the email's authenticity, as it claimed to be an urgent action request from a legitimate source. However, officials have stated that this is simply a phishing scam with no connection to the university.
Penn officials have said their Office of Information Security is working on resolving the issue and securing the institution's systems against future cyber threats. "A fraudulent email has been circulated that appears to come from the University of Pennsylvania's Graduate School of Education," a spokesperson for Penn confirmed, emphasizing that it does not reflect the university or its GSE's values.
While some recipients of the email were students or alumni with legitimate connections to the institution, others had no affiliation with Penn whatsoever. Social media posts showed that people received multiple versions of the message, with the number ranging from one to ten times.
The email also contained false claims about Penn's security practices and admissions policies, specifically criticizing the university's use of affirmative action in its admissions process. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against the policy, invalidating it in 2023.
This is not the first time that Penn students have faced a phishing scam. In 2022, students received a satirical email from the Board of Trustees that criticized interim President Larry Jameson and former President Liz Magill's return to office.
A malicious email making disparaging claims against the University of Pennsylvania has been sent to students and alumni, with the university confirming it is a fake. The email, which was shared on social media platforms, appeared to come from the Graduate School of Education's emails but was actually created by hackers.
The message contained derogatory language toward Penn, labeling the university "elitist" and urging recipients not to donate. A subject line that read "We got hacked (Action Required)" added to the email's authenticity, as it claimed to be an urgent action request from a legitimate source. However, officials have stated that this is simply a phishing scam with no connection to the university.
Penn officials have said their Office of Information Security is working on resolving the issue and securing the institution's systems against future cyber threats. "A fraudulent email has been circulated that appears to come from the University of Pennsylvania's Graduate School of Education," a spokesperson for Penn confirmed, emphasizing that it does not reflect the university or its GSE's values.
While some recipients of the email were students or alumni with legitimate connections to the institution, others had no affiliation with Penn whatsoever. Social media posts showed that people received multiple versions of the message, with the number ranging from one to ten times.
The email also contained false claims about Penn's security practices and admissions policies, specifically criticizing the university's use of affirmative action in its admissions process. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against the policy, invalidating it in 2023.
This is not the first time that Penn students have faced a phishing scam. In 2022, students received a satirical email from the Board of Trustees that criticized interim President Larry Jameson and former President Liz Magill's return to office.
this is so frustrating! i'm not surprised tho, like, our university is already under so much scrutiny with all the online stuff going on... & now they have to deal with some scammers trying to ruin their rep 
. anyway, glad the university is taking it seriously & is looking into it ASAP 
. and btw, this is like, super ironic that some of these email recipients had no affiliation with Penn lol what's next, right? 
. I mean, come on, Penn is a top-tier school with a legacy like no other, but hackers are trying to bring them down by spreading lies about their admissions process? It's just not right.
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. Keep your chin up, Penn students! Don't let these hackers bring you down 
. I mean, can you imagine getting an email that makes you question the integrity of your own university? It's just a scam, and now Penn students are having to deal with the fallout 
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They're not even trying to be sneaky, it's just a bunch of lazy hackers who want to cause some trouble 
. Like, come on, guys, use your common sense! If an email from someone you trust says "action required", it's probably a phishing attempt 
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. You're not funny, you're just embarrassing yourselves 
. i mean, come on, if someone emails you saying they got hacked (action required) from the university's grad school of education... red flag alert 
. and to make matters worse, they're sharing false info about penn's admissions policies 
. like, no one needs that stress in their life 
. and what's with all these phishing scams circulating around campus? 2022 already had a satirical email from the board of trustees... seems like penn students are just targets for hackers 
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this just shows how vulnerable we are online 
I remember that satirical email back in 2022, it was like a wake-up call for us students to be more careful with our online interactions 
. And now this... it's just not right. We need to be more vigilant and report these kinds of emails ASAP so we don't spread the fake info around 
. It's always a good reminder that we need to be cautious with our email attachments and click-throughs 
. And can't they just come up with more creative ways to scam people than making fake emails? 
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