Cyber Threats: Phishing

What is Phishing?

Phishing is a terminology given to cyber criminals who seek information, data, money etc. They named it phishing because the criminals are “fishing” for a nibble to catch their victims. The information they are usually aiming to catch is your passwords, bank details, pin numbers, address, social account details, DOB, etc. Once the criminals have this information they can cause damage from blackmail to identity theft.

Source: Phishing on Get Safe Online - Vimeo

How does Phishing work?

The criminals create fake websites and messages that copy the original organisation. They will try convince you to hand over sensitive details, or they can ask you to download an attachment or follow a link. The phishing emails/messages are becoming popular with companies like PayPal, eBay and Amazon, exactly recreating the original messages of these companies. They will also mimic social media platforms like Facebook; but they don’t stop there, they will also pretend to be Government and financial institutions.

Phishing emails are becoming more realistic to the extent that they redirect you to the organisation's site and ask you to enter your details, however it will be through a false pop-up. They will also convince you that there is a huge issue that needs your immediate attention and you need to enter your details or else you will be compromised.

The majority of phishing attacks are done via emails, however, they are growing into phone calls, text messages, social media platforms and DM in games. The phone call and text message are so popular that new terms have been given to them: Vishing and Smishing are the phone call and text-message version of phishing. 

Types of phishing?

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