NDTV senior journalist and executive editor Nidhi Razdan found herself in the eye of something the moment she disclosed the “sophisticated phishing attack” which took place in the name of Ivy League University – Harvard. Razdan was the executive editor of NDTV and the primary anchor of NDTV 24×7 news show “Left, Right & Centre” and the weekly debate show, “The Big Fight”.
WHAT IS THIS “HARVARD” PHISHING SCAM?
Under the name of Harvard University, a phishing attack has been made on the former journalist.
Phishing is a fraudulent attempt to obtain sensitive information or data by disguising oneself as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication. These include passwords, credit card details, One Time Passwords(OTP), etc.
Earlier in 2020, Razdan left her acclaimed designation of an executive editor and journalist in NDTV when she received a letter from the very reputed Harvard University offering her the position of an assistant professor of Journalism. However, this was not a “Harvard offer” but a “picturesque phishing scam”. Certainly, the letter had innumerable forgeries veiled by unobtrusiveness.
She took to Twitter today to talk about this proverbially unethical attack.
I have been the victim of a very serious phishing attack. I’m putting this statement out to set the record straight about what I’ve been through. I will not be addressing this issue any further on social media. pic.twitter.com/bttnnlLjuh
— Nidhi Razdan (@Nidhi) January 15, 2021
HOW WAS THE PHISHING ATTACK EXECUTED?Â
Razdan claims that she had received a pernicious e-mail from which the attack sprouted back in June 2020. This e-mail offered her the post of associate professor of journalism at the Ivy League university. As per the e-mail, she was asked to join the campus in September 2020.
As a reflexive action, she left her 21-year-old job at NDTV.
Later, the perpetrators told her in another e-mail that she needs to join the college in January 2021 pertaining to the ongoing health emergency crisis. Presuming this as the “new normal”, she continued preparing for this new job snubbing off the second-thoughts crossing her mind. It was only recently when she could sense the wolf at the door.
As quick as a flash, Razdan approached senior authorities at Harvard and discovered how she fell prey to this phishing attack since the Varsity had never mailed her.
“The perpetrators of this attack used clever forgeries and misrepresentations to obtain access to my personal data and communications and may have also gained access to my devices and my email/social media accounts”, Razdan declared.Â
In addition to the police complaint, Razdan has written to Harvard University asking for rectitude knee jerk reaction.
Moreover, several Indian journalists and authors like Aparna Jain extended support to Razdan. They tweeted that the culprits should be caught at the earliest.
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