Hofstra Disables Online Tool Used to Scam Students
BY: MICHELLE RABINOVICH
(March 11, 2022) — Hofstra has shut down a feature on its website that allowed outside users to send messages to students’ emails following an incident in which the tool was used to scam students.
It is unclear how many students were impacted by the con. However, The Clocktower identified at least 10 different students who received the same email in late January. The sender – or senders – spoofed an official Hofstra email address to make it appear as if it came from the university.
The email consisted of a job offer from “Mrs. Christina Michelle” for a part-time personal assistant. “It’s a real Part-time [sic] job that pays well (i.e. WORK FROM HOME POSITION),” the email said. “All expenses and taxes will be covered by me. You will work between 2 to 4 hours a week and the pay is $300 bi-weekly.”
Students who replied were sent a follow-up email requesting their full name, age and address, according to emails reviewed by The Clocktower.
PHOTO: The scam email received by Hofstra students.
“In this particular case, a person made use of an old tool on the Hofstra website called the People Finder,” said Karla Schuster, the Assistant Vice President of University Relations at Hofstra, in an email interview with The Clocktower. “It was used by one individual who was trying to get a hoax through to students.”
The People Finder tool was an online contact form which enabled those outside the university to get in touch with individual students.
“They could fill out the form and the message would be passed on to the student without disclosing the student's email address,” said Schuster, explaining how such a widespread message came to be. “After it was abused in this way, we took the tool down. It can no longer be used by anyone.”
Schuster added that this ultimately was not ruled to be a security breach of Hofstra students or faculty, because their email addresses or any personal information were not released.
“I did not [report this to Hofstra] because the original email said it came through the school’s system, so I had no idea what happened,” said junior drama and fine arts major Sydney Kenton, who had not initially realized the scheme and began a correspondence. “I [only] thought it was a scam after she said she’d send money for me to buy things for her because I knew the money would never come.”
Madison Klee, a graduate psychology student, also got the message. However, they completely brushed off the email. “I didn't care about the email that much nor was I surprised that it was a scam,” they said. “How crappy is it that some weird scammer is out there targeting broke college students, though.”
Schuster emphasized the important of students staying up-to-date with their internet safety. “Not clicking links in emails, not opening attachments we don't recognize, not sharing usernames and passwords with other people, and not using the same password for different websites are all part of the strategy,” she said. “It's up to each individual to also do their part.”
Members of the Hofstra community can learn more about online privacy from the university’s Information Technology Services website.
This is not the first instance of this specific scam email surfacing across college campuses. Brown University, for example, has a webpage that warns students of a scam with nearly identical language to that found in the emails sent out to Hofstra students, giving the same details and requesting the same type of personal information from its recipients.
When asked for comment via email, “Mrs. Christina Michelle” did not respond.
