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A hoax is a form of social engineering designed to convince targets to perform an action that will cause problems or reduce their IT security. A hoax can be an email that proclaims some imminent threat is spreading across the internet and that you must perform certain tasks in order to protect yourself. The hoax often claims that taking no action will result in harm. Victims may be instructed to delete files, change configuration settings, or install fraudulent security software, which results in a compromised OS, a non-booting OS, or a reduction in their security defenses. Additionally, hoax emails often encourage the victim to forward the message to all their contacts in order to “spread the word.” Hoax messages are often spoofed without a verifiable origin.

Whenever you encounter a potential hoax or just are concerned that a claimed threat is real, do the research. A couple of great places to check for hoax information or to look up your suspected hoax message are snopes.com and phishtank.com.