OVERVIEW
Target audience: Entire McGill community
When you submit a request or report an issue to IT Services, you will receive an email notification so that you can follow up on the status and/or converse with the IT support person handling your case. This article explains the ticket reference numbers and what they mean. It also provides clues on how to spot fraudulent emails that attempt to mimic those sent from McGill IT Support.
In this article:
What the ticket reference numbers mean
The format of reference numbers corresponds to the way support tickets are classified:
- “TKT” - general inquiries and how-to questions
- “INC” - incidents (something doesn’t work)
- “REQ” - service requests
- “RITM” - each requested item (there can be multiple items in a request)
- "KFT" - Knowledge feedback tasks (applicable when you leave a comment on an article and we request additional information)
- "KRT" - Knowledge review task (part of the yearly article audit process).
How to tell the difference between IT Support notifications and phishing attempts
Cybercriminals often mimic or copy the look and feel of institutional or corporate emails in an effort to lure recipients to click on links and then provide their login credentials or other personal information. (See more information on Phishing scams and how to protect yourself).
So, how can you tell the difference between McGill’s emails and phishing attempts? It isn’t always easy to spot a fraud, but if you aren’t expecting an email from IT support, then you should ignore any emails referring to IT support tickets.
Also, keep in mind these clues:
- Legitimate emails will be sent from IT Support, with the email address itsupport@mcgill.ca. However, cybercriminals can spoof email addresses, so again, if you’re not expecting an email from IT Support, report it!
- If you use Outlook for your McGill email, it offers additional clues to help you determine if an email is legitimate.
- Links to reopen an incident or close now will only send a new email to itsupport@mcgill.ca. They should not take you to another website.
- The link to our satisfaction survey will contain the domain name “service-now.com”.
Below is a sample of the automated email notification you would receive when an IT incident ticket is resolved.
If you are ever in doubt about the validity of an email, you can quickly report it by using the Report Message, Report Junk, or Report Phishing buttons in any Outlook app, including Outlook on the web (https://outlook.com/mcgill.ca).
You can also click My Tickets on the IT Support site to view a list of all your Requests, Incidents (issues) and Tickets (general inquiries). Click on the title to view details, including all correspondence associated with the ticket.
Closing emails and satisfaction surveys
Once your support ticket is closed (after an incident is resolved or request is fulfilled), the closing email will contain a link to a satisfaction survey.
You can also find these satisfaction survey links directly on the Home page of the IT Support site, in the My surveys box.
The survey is just a couple of simple questions, with a text area for you to add further explanation, if needed.
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES: