You may receive non-delivery email messages from a number of email providers, including Hotmail, AOL and Comcast. This is the result of a compromised email account that sent out thousands of spam messages. Because of this we have been blocked by some mail systems as spammers. Most of these blocks will be removed within the next 24-48 hours—some may take longer. Each email provider has their own set of rules and delays to protect their users from spam. We use this same method to protect the College of Charleston Exchange users.
This compromised email account appears to be the result of a College employee responding to a phishing scam, providing their username and password to a criminal. The phishing message most likely asked the person to click on a link that led to a web-form or replied to an email asking for their login information. The IT Department at the College of Charleston will never ask you for your login and password by email. Any e-mail message you receive asking for this information is a Phishing attempt, and should simply be deleted.
We will continue to monitor this issue and provide updates to the College community as they become available. We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience as we work to resolve this issue. If you have any questions or concerns please contact the helpdesk at helpdesk@cofc.edu or 953-3375 opt #3.