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Phishing is on the Rise
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Recent research suggests that
over 80% of businesses have seen
an increase in phishing
attempts. What is phishing?
Phishing is a social engineering
attempt to deceive people into
giving up credentials or
downloading malware. Ninety-six
percent of phishing attempts use
email. Voice (Vishing) and SMS
or text (SMiShing) attempts are
rising.
How does it work?
You receive an email from a
well-known brand or from what
appears to be in-house. The
subject line varies but usually
suggests an action is needed.
Subject lines like "Your recent
purchase" or "Payment denied"
are common. The email may look
legitimate. You are encouraged
to click a link once you open
the email. The link might say,
"Log in to your Amazon account
for payment information." This
email is easy to ignore if you
have not made a recent Amazon
purchase. Otherwise, the link is
tempting. Clicking the link
subjects you to a fraudulent
login page where your
credentials are at risk, or you
may exposed to malware.
Attachments are another source
of problems. Attachments like
office documents and PDFs may
contain scripts that can infect
your computer and gather
information. Do not open any
attachments you are not
expecting.
Spear phishing
is a more specific approach. An
attacker usually targets
individuals where they know the
person's position and the type
of work they do. Social media
accounts like LinkedIn often
include this information. These
attacks are more difficult to
spot. Consider the following
email.
Dear Bob,
I seem to have misplaced my
server login credentials. Frank
Jones, the head of IT, suggested
I contact you for login details.
Thanks, you're a lifesaver,
Mary Collins
Risk
Exposure Unit
Your Company
555-555-5555
There
may be several problems with
this email. Does Mary Collins
exist and work for the risk
exposure unit? First, check the
email address that the email is
from. If you replied quickly,
trying to help out a coworker,
and the email address is
fraudulent, you may be sending
credentials to a criminal.
Second, why doesn't the Head of
IT take care of Mary's problem?
Considering this example, you
can see how people can fall prey
to similar attacks.
How do we stop
phishing attacks? Training
everyone in the company to be
cautious when opening emails
creates awareness. Developing
processes for handling emails
and attachments guides people to
beware of potential phishing
attacks. Warn employees to be
vigilant and teach them what to
watch out for, and you reduce
phishing risks.
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What's New |
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Check out the
latest blog post:
IT Elves
December
2023 Marketing Edge Blog Post
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Just For Grins
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- I got new shoes
today. Not a single person asked me If I could run
fast in my new shoes. Being an adult is stupid.
- I guess you could
call me a hero. I just rescued some wine that was
trapped in a bottle.
- Which essential oil
calms family members down? Chloroform..It's
chloroform isn't it.
- I added memory foam
insoles to my shoes. No more forgetting why I went
to the kitchen.
- I hope when I die,
it's early in the morning so I don't go to work
that day for no reason.
- If you say gullible
really slowly it sounds like orange.
- If you eat cake fast
enough your fitbit will think your walking.
- My Wife says I am a
real animal.... a sloth on xanax.
- If I was skinny and
mentally stable I'd be unstoppable. Y'all are luck
I'm squishy and crazy.
- I may look fine but
deep down I don't remember any of my passwords.
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