Date of incident: September 7, 2026

The Vancouver School Board recently identified a fraudulent email message that was sent to some student email accounts.

We are reaching out to share information about a recent email message sent to some student email accounts that was not a legitimate VSB communication.

While it was sent from a staff email account, it was not sent by the staff member. The message offered free items and asked recipients to pay shipping costs to receive them.

Our systems quickly identified and removed the message from inboxes. For most recipients, we believe the message was deleted before it was viewed.

Although this message was sent to only some student accounts and removed, we shared this information with all VSB families as a reminder about staying safe online.

If you have questions about this incident, please contact us by email at assist@vsb.bc.ca or by phone at 604-713-8926.

Remember:

• VSB will never request payment through non-VSB systems or ask for banking information outside of VSB systems.
• Be cautious of emails and other messages that pressure students to act quickly, ask them to keep something secret or include unexpected links or attachments.
• If a message does not seem right, do not click links, open attachments, respond to the message or provide any information.

Our school teams encourage students to ask questions when something does not seem right. Reviewing an email with your child before responding can help them stay safe online.

There are also helpful tips on the ERASE website that provide information about using technology responsibly, protecting privacy and staying safe online.

The Vancouver School Board has notified the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for British Columbia (OIPC) of this incident.

Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for British Columbia
PO Box 9038, Stn. Prov. Govt.
Victoria, BC V8W 9A4
Telephone: 250-387-5629 or 604-660-2421 (Vancouver)
Fax: 250-387-1696