How to Spot a Phishing Email Attack - 5 key steps for 2020. SpamTitan from TitanHQ

Описание: Millions of phishing emails are sent every day. It only takes one to bring down your business. Find out how to spot a phishing email.

Email phishing scams are carried out online by tech-savvy scammers and identity theft criminals. They use spam emails, fake websites and email to dupe users into providing sensitive information, like banking passwords and credit card numbers. Once you take the phisher's bait, they use this information to create fake accounts to steal your money or even your identity. For businesses phishing scams can lead to data breaches that result in the loss of confidential business data and customer information. It has cost some company’s millions. The Scoular Co. lost $17.2 million in June 2014 as a result of phishing. Even large companies with extensive resources can be succesfully targeted by phishers. In May 2017 DocuSign, the digital signature technology provider, were targeted. A hacker gained access to a ‘non-core’ system that was used to send communications to users via email and stole users’ email addresses.It is unclear exactly how many email addresses were stolen, the DocuSign website indicates the firm has more than 200 million users.


Here are some tell-tale signs of a phishing email:

1. Without opening the email, look at the name of the sender. Does it EXACTLY match other emails from the same party? If not, it could be packing malware.



2. You are asked to reply with confidential data - A legitimate business will not ask you to furnish your username and/or password or to click a link to change your password. If an email requests banking information, be suspicious. Don’t fall for it.



3. You are offered something valuable at little or no cost – The Nigerian prince comes to mind. Or you have won some sweepstakes that you never entered. Remember that even if you know the sender, the sender’s address book could have been hijacked and used to disseminate phishing emails.



4. The email threatens you with dire consequences if you do not comply:



“Your computer has a virus” – This is a trick in email and website pop-up advertisements. You are asked to download a “security package” to combat the virus. Unfortunately, rogue security programs are one of the most common sources of malware infection. Ignore warnings about malware from any source except your verified antimalware program.

The email asks for “urgent” or “immediate” action, particularly involving financial transactions – This is how The Scoular Co. lost $17.2 million. Confirm any such requests by telephone or, better yet, in person. Check with managers at your company before clicking on or replying to such emails.

https://www.titanhq.com/blog/10-tell-...