A Madison Square Garden spokesperson explained that the deceptive email was deployed because the company was previously hacked and extorted via compromised employee credentials|Niels257|CC BY-SA 3.0

Madison Square Garden (MSG) employees received an email promising them New York Knicks NBA championship rings.

The catch? Staff members who clicked the link got no bling—just a mandatory cybersecurity class.

According to The Athletic, the fake claim has angered many.

An MSG spokesperson explained the deceptive email was part of a cybersecurity exercise prompted by a previous hack in which attackers used compromised employee credentials to extort the company.

After yesterday’s revelations, the spokesperson told the New York Post that the company had always planned to gift more than 275 championship rings, valued at nearly $4 million, to employees. The timing was curious, to say the least: the clarification came just a day after The Athletic reported on the ill-fated phishing test.

The spokesperson also called the rings an unfortunate mistake.

The Knicks celebrated their 2026 NBA championship with a ring-and-banner ceremony on Tuesday night, where team president Leon Rose received his 22-carat diamond-and-blue-sapphire ring, designed by Jason of Beverly Hills.

Not everyone left with a prize, however. Seven anonymous league sources said the team’s assistant coaches were given empty boxes instead of championship rings.

The assistants were told in advance that their rings weren’t ready because they still needed to be fitted. Even so, the snub reportedly sparked reactions ranging from genuine anger to irritation.

Phishing tests are common, but do they actually work?
Industry experts warn that tricking employees erodes workplace trust without offering meaningful security gains.