{"id":73106,"date":"2014-10-16T21:42:18","date_gmt":"2014-10-17T01:42:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rbach.net\/blog\/index.php\/"},"modified":"2021-08-25T12:54:36","modified_gmt":"2021-08-25T16:54:36","slug":"how-to-spot-phishing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rbach.net\/index.php\/how-to-spot-phishing\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Spot Phishing"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Phish<\/strong>ing<\/strong> scams are spam emails sent by cyber-criminals that can lead to identity theft<\/strong> at home and data breaches<\/strong> at work. Phishing attacks pretend to be from a legitimate person or organization to trick you into revealing personal information<\/strong>. A phishing attack begins when a cyber-criminal sends an email that looks like it originates from your bank.<\/p>\n

\"Phishing\"<\/a>The email might hint at a problem with your account<\/strong> asking you to \u201cconfirm\u201d account information by clicking on a link that takes you to a fake website<\/strong>. The fake website asks you to type in your bank account user name and password. The goal is to convince the target that the web page is legitimate so that they will enter their credentials. Once entered, attackers can access an individual\u2019s finances<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Phishing attacks<\/h3>\n

RSA<\/a> reports<\/a> 2013 was a record year for phishing attacks<\/strong>. They report that nearly 450,000 phishing attacks were launched in 2013 with losses estimated to be nearly $6 Billion<\/strong>. The security firm believes that these attacks will continue for the foreseeable future. They point out that it only costs an attacker $65.00 to spam 500,000 email addresses.<\/p>\n

\"spoofedSymantec<\/a> reports<\/a> (PDF) that 1 in every 392 emails<\/strong> a user receives is a phishing attempt. 71% of the phishing attacks were related to spoofed financial organizations and login credentials for accounts seem to be the main information phishers are looking for. Dell<\/a> SecureWorks<\/a> delved into the depths of the online underground economy and found the value of personally identifiable information<\/strong> (PII<\/a>).<\/p>\n

value of personally identifiable information<\/h3>\n