Information Technology Services has been notified about two recent e-mail phishing scams from accounts claiming to be Binghamton University e-mail addresses and asking recipients to send their passwords via a reply e-mail.

Phishing is a technique in which users are directed by an official-looking e-mail to what looks exactly like a bank, government or other Web site or e-mail address and asked to enter data such as their credit card, Social Security Number, ATM PIN number, password or other personal information for one reason or another. No business or government entity would ever require you to send it sensitive information it already possesses, so treat these messages like spam and delete them. Information Technology Services advises people to never send any passwords via an e-mail message for any reason. If you're really unsure of the validity of the message, call a contact number for the organization obtained from paper correspondence or the telephone book.