- GoDaddy is being criticized for sending employees an email announcing a $ 650 holiday bonus.
- The email was actually a phishing test.
- “To ensure that you receive your one-time bonus in time for the holidays, select your location and fill in the details by Friday, December 18,” said the email.
- Employees who failed the phishing email test were asked to retake the company’s security training.
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The world’s largest domain registrar and web hosting company, GoDaddy, is facing a negative reaction for deceiving employees with a phishing test disguised as a holiday bonus ad.
On December 14, GoDaddy employees received an email from the sender [email protected], entitled “GoDaddy Holiday Party”, according to The Copper Courier.
“2020 was a record year for GoDaddy, thanks to you!” the email continued, “although we can’t celebrate together during our annual Christmas Party, we want to show our gratitude and share a $ 650 Christmas bonus!”
Recipients were asked to submit personal information by December 18. Phishing emails often cause involuntary people to reveal personal or financial information that could be used with malicious intent.
An email from December 14 sent to hundreds of GoDaddy employees with a holiday bonus for employees, which was actually a phishing test.
Screenshots of the email were sent to The Copper Courier by several GoDaddy employees.
A December 14 email sent to hundreds of GoDaddy employees with a holiday bonus for employees, which was actually a phishing test.
Screenshots of the email were sent to The Copper Courier by several GoDaddy employees.
Several GoDaddy employees shared the email with The Copper Courier; the email included a snowflake banner with the theme of an invitation to a holiday party.
Two days after the announcement was sent, at least 500 employees received an email from the company’s security director, according to The Copper Courier.
“You are receiving this email because you failed our recent phishing test,” wrote the company’s head of security, Demetrius Comes, in the email. “You will need to redo the Security Awareness Social Engineering training.”
Companies regularly use methods to teach employees about computer security. Security breaches can have a disruptive effect on businesses and expose people to identity theft.
GoDaddy did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In 2020, GoDaddy reported “record customer growth” and said it had exceeded 20 million customers, but the company has not escaped the difficulties. The company had to fire or relocate hundreds of employees during the pandemic.