Safe Links | Safe Attachments | Link Decoder | FAQ |

Safe Links & Safe Attachments Information

As part of an ongoing effort to protect faculty, staff, students, and the university from malware and unsafe links, Microsoft Defender is enabled for Office 365, which includes two security features: Safe Links and Safe Attachment. Microsoft Defender is a scanning service to help mitigate malware and virus infiltration and blocks threats when detected.

Safe Attachments

Safe Attachments scans attachments for malicious software. If detected as unsafe, the attachment will be removed from the email and replaced by a short text file named “Malware Alert Text.txt” to indicate to the recipient the malicious attachment file name and action taken.

Note: This feature may cause a minor delay in email delivery depending on the size of the attachments to allow the scanning to occur.

Remember, even with protection, always be cautious of suspicious links and attachments.

Assistance

If you believe an attachment was removed by error, please contact the ITS Support Center to assist with recovering it.

Safelink Decoder Form

Paste rewritten Safe Links URL here to decode the link.

Frequently Asked Questions

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What does Safe Links look like?
The hyperlink in the email you receive may be rewritten and appear different. You may notice links have a prefix such as https://nam11.safelinks.protection.outlook.com.

What if I am blocked from accessing a legitimate website?
Please contact the ITS Support Center to report any false positives. An allow list is available to help manage URLs that should not be scanned.

How do Safe Links and Safe Attachments impact my email?
Safe Links and Safe Attachments look for and protect you from email phishing links/websites that are known to contain malicious software, email attachments, and links.

Does that mean Microsoft is reading my email?
No, Microsoft is not reading your email. URLs are rewritten in incoming emails and emails sent within Office 365. Those URLs are scanned to see if they are malicious when a user clicks on the rewritten URL to access it.

What should I do when I encounter the Safe Links protection page?
First, you should verify that the site you were trying to access is correct by looking closely at the site named in the browser bar. Sometimes a misspelled word or string of characters in the site name takes you to a website you may not have intended to visit. If you think that this was blocked in error, and there is a business or academic reason to get to the site, contact the ITS Support Center.

Does Safe Links and Safe Attachments work when I use SharePoint, OneDrive, Teams or other Office 365 applications?
Safe Links and Safe Attachments search SharePoint, OneDrive, and Microsoft Teams to identify if any documents contain phishing links or malicious software. If a malicious file is detected, it will be blocked from interaction. A blocked file will appear as in the screenshot below.
Blocked file in Office 365.

Once a file is blocked, you will not be able to interact with it in any way other than delete it. Please see Microsoft's website for more information.

Is there a delay in the time it takes for my email to be received if I attach a file?
The recipient of an email may experience a small delay if the email contains a large attachment.

What should I do if I think a link or attachment was blocked in error?
If you believe a site was blocked by mistake or you have a business or academic need to access a site that has been blocked, please report it to the ITS Support Center by forwarding the message as an attachment to support@gmu.edu. If you believe an attachment was removed by error, please contact the ITS Support Center who can assist with recovering it.

If I get the Safe Links protection page, does that mean I was infected with malware?
No, just the opposite. You were prevented from accessing the malware site before you could be infected.

Does Safe Links protect me from malicious sites when I'm browsing the web?
No. Safe Links only scans your Mason Office 365 email to identify phishing links and links to websites that are malicious.

What happens if a user, or group of users, needs to access a blocked site?
The user or group of users with a legitimate academic or business need can request access to a blocked site by contacting the ITS Support Center. The IT Security Office will evaluate each request.

Last modified: August 5, 2022