Fraudulent Text Messages Impersonating Trinity Leadership
Trinity College community members are receiving fraudulent text messages from individuals falsely claiming to be college leaders.
⚠ Active Security Advisory
Published August 18, 2026
Fraudulent Text Messages Impersonating Trinity Leadership
Trinity College community members are receiving fraudulent text messages from individuals falsely claiming to be President Lugo or other senior college leaders.
What Is Happening?
This is an active smishing campaign currently affecting colleges and universities across the country.
Attackers are impersonating senior leaders and attempting to convince recipients to purchase gift cards, click malicious links, disclose personal information, or continue conversations outside official Trinity communication channels.
While these attacks are common within higher education, Trinity College has identified recent attempts targeting members of our community.
What These Messages Often Look Like
👤 Impersonating Leadership
A text message claiming to be President Lugo or another Trinity leader asking for a quick favor.
🎁 Gift Card Requests
Requests to purchase gift cards and provide the card numbers or codes.
🔗 Suspicious Links
Messages asking you to click a link or verify account information.
📱 Personal Contact Requests
Requests for your personal phone number, email address, or private contact details.
What Should You Do?
✅ Do not click links
✅ Forward the message to 7726 (SPAM)
✅ Delete the message
✅ Contact Information Security if you interacted with the message
Report Spam Text Messages
Most wireless carriers allow spam text reporting by forwarding the text message to:
Reporting these messages helps carriers investigate and block fraudulent senders.
Already Responded or Clicked a Link?
Do not panic, but act quickly.
- Contact Information Security immediately.
- Contact the LITS Help Desk.
- Change your password if you shared Trinity credentials.
- We will help assess the situation and determine next steps.
Learn More
Phishing Emails
Learn how phishing works, what warning signs look like, and how to recognize common attack techniques.
Impersonation Scams
Learn more about impersonation attacks and social engineering tactics used by cybercriminals to steal information, money, or access.
A Reminder to Our Community
We are sharing this advisory because transparency matters. This campaign is active; it is affecting higher education institutions nationwide, and our community deserves to be informed.
You do not need to be a cybersecurity expert to identify these scams. Pause before taking action, especially when a message creates urgency or asks for something unusual.
Trinity leadership will never ask you to purchase gift cards, share passwords, disclose account credentials, or provide sensitive personal information through text messages.
If something feels off, trust your instincts and verify through another communication channel.
Published: August 18, 2026
