Phishing Awareness and Education

The ACPS Phishing Awareness and Education Program promotes awareness, education, and safety concerning phishing attacks. The goal of the program is to help our ACPS community protect themselves and the district by learning to recognize, report, and avoid malicious emails.

The program periodically sends out simulated messages that mimic real phishing messages. This provides a safe educational space for staff to practice identifying a phishing message with no penalty if the link is clicked.

REcent examples of phishingHOW to spot phishing messages phishing TRAINING VIDEO

This Month's Phishing Message

Let's break down the most recent message to see how we can spot a phishing attempt. 

January 2025 phish example
  1. External: The email is marked "External" both in the subject of the email and in the bottom yellow banner. 
  2. Who: The email comes from an address that isn't k12albemarle.org.
  3. Odd: The request is unusual and unexpected.
  4. Urgent: There is a sense of urgency, prompting you to perform an action that could give away your credentials. 
  5. The Hover Technique: Shows you the true, embedded website the email is trying to take you to. 

We're Here To Help

If you do click on a malicious link, download a bad attachment, or provide credentials to a phony website, the first thing you should do is let a member of the Department of Technology know. We will provide you with directions to ensure you, your colleagues, and our students, remain safe.

Open a TicketReset Your Password

First page of the PDF file: PhishingTipsPoster1