James Dolan Mandates Cybersecurity Training After Knicks Staff Click Fake Ring Email

Madison Square Garden employees who clicked a simulated phishing link in late September were required to take a mandatory cybersecurity course.

The New York Times reported on Thursday that the New York Knicks organization sent the email as a test to measure staff vigilance against scams. The message, which arrived in late September, bore the subject line "Congratulations, your Employee Championship Ring is here." Recipients were instructed to click a link to choose between two ring designs.

According to team sources cited in the report, those who fell for the bait were ordered to attend the training. The initiative was reportedly designed to address the growing cybersecurity concerns of James Dolan. Dolan is the owner of the Knicks, the New York Rangers, and Madison Square Garden.

Large organizations frequently use simulated phishing emails to identify which workers miss warning signs in suspicious messages. These tests often mimic internal communications but include subtle flaws. Condé Nast, the parent company of Ars Technica, uses a similar strategy by sending test messages from an address with a misspelled domain, "condenest.com."

It remains unclear if the Knicks email contained similar obvious red flags. The offer was also plausible because most NBA team employees typically receive championship rings, though their versions are often less elaborate and costly than the players' editions. Joe Vardon, a senior NBA writer for The Athletic, noted this common practice. The Athletic was acquired by The New York Times in 2022 and subsequently merged into the parent news organization.

The timing of the test added to the confusion because the Knicks recently won their first NBA championship in more than 50 years. Staff may have found the fake offer tied to that milestone believable, or at least irritating. Vardon’s original article focused on a separate incident where the Knicks raised their first league championship banner since 1973 on Tuesday.

During that ceremony, assistant coaches received boxes that did not contain rings. The team stated that the coaches are expected to receive their rings at a later date.