COT Security Alert – Spam with Illegal Images of Children
The COT Security Administration Branch has become aware of spam containing illegal
images of children landing in email inboxes in other states. It is possible these could
eventually make it to Commonwealth of Kentucky Inboxes regardless of steps taken to
prevent it.
Several things are known about the emails thus far. The “To:” lines contain the correct
email address of the recipient. The “Subject:” lines vary on these emails, but may
include things like the following: “chiLd”, “Links”, “Images”, and “ChiLdren__DOCTEXT__rdquo;. The body
of the email includes a URL which contains the correct email address of the recipient.
These emails contain file attachments that contain illegal images of children. Users are
urged not to open the emails, and never to open attachments in emails such as these
where the sender is unknown and the email is unexpected. Emails such as these often
contain malware in addition to the illegal content, both of which will store content on the
user’s machine. Malware could also spread to other machines on the network.
If a user receives one of these emails, it should be reported immediately to
COTSecurityServicesISS@ky.gov for the purpose of notification to all the proper
authorities.
To properly report and take further steps in blocking the emails, an actual copy is
required. It is not necessary to open the email to obtain a copy of it. Simply select the
email in the Outlook Inbox (or other mailbox) list, go to Edit on the Outlook menu bar and
choose Copy from the menu. Open a new email, right-click in the body of it, and then
choose Paste from the pop-up menu. The email is then ready to report as requested.
NOTICE: COT is providing this information so that you are aware of the latest security threats, vulnerabilities, software patches,
etc. You should consult with your network administrator or other technical resources to ensure that the appropriate actions for
these alerts are followe