What is Phishing With the rapid development of technology, the complexity of attacks is improving. The more technologically advanced people become, the more advanced phishing attacks will be. Also, with everyone spending more time online, the number of attacks in general has also increased. Here is our short guide on what to do to stay safe from attacks.
What is phishing?
Originating around 1995, just 4 years after the first website appeared, phishing involves using deceptive emails and websites to illegally obtain personal and business information from users. This information – usernames, passwords, credit cards – is then used to steal money or other information.
The word “phishing” itself is a combination of “fishing” and “phreaks,” which is how hackers called themselves. Phishing is considered a form of social engineering, a method of manipulating people by falsely representing themselves in the context of web security.
Types of Phishing
What is spear phishing? Spear targets a specific person or organization rather than random users. This scam usually aims to steal sensitive data or information from the specific victim, such as account passwords or financial information. It requires specific knowledge of the victim such as some personal data. Hackers use this information (usually in an email) to pretend to be a trustworthy company or person and acquire the data they need.
Spear phishing vs. phishing
Both are attacks that aim to steal sensitive Singapore Email Database information. However, “phishing” is the more generic term for this type of attack, as it is basically any attempt to trick victims into sharing sensitive data.
By definition, spear is personalized to a specific victim. It requires more work, time, and information to achieve its goal, but because spear phishing messages are personalized, it is more difficult to identify these types of attacks.
The best way to protect yourself from spear is generally to be careful about what you do online. Here are some tips to follow to avoid spear phishing.
Be careful what personal information you post on the internet
Use strong passwords Update your software regularly. Be Buy Email Database List careful when opening emails and clicking on links Phishing on Microsoft 365
These types of attacks are emails that target Microsoft 365 users. One of the most common things attackers usually do is trick victims into downloading a file by masking its extension. Attackers use a special Unicode character, which is the right-to-left override. It allows them, for example, to mask an “.exe” file into a “.txt” file. As a result, the victim downloads the “.exe” file, which immediately installs the malicious software on their computer.
Whaling Phishing
Whaling is a highly targeted attack. This type of Attack targets Bulk Database specific individuals, such as business executives. It attempts to encourage victims to take a specific action, usually related to transferring money or disclosing specific information. Whaling emails often target large financial institutions and are more complicated than standard emails because they target executives.
These emails typically contain personalized information about the company or executive, create a sense of urgency. Match the company tone, and encourage them to do some of the following.
