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Phishing is a type of fraud in which attackers pretend to be trusted individuals in order to obtain confidential information.
Beware of phishing scams: Watch for suspicious URLs, urgent requests for personal information, and other signs.
Learn about the different methods of phishing, from scam emails to spear phishing, and learn how to protect yourself in cyberspace.
Introduction
Phishing is a type of scam in which attackers pretend to be trusted individuals and trick victims into disclosing sensitive information. In this article we will talk about what phishing is, how it works and how to protect yourself from it.
How phishing works
Phishing relies on social engineering: attackers manipulate people to learn their confidential information. For example, scammers first collect personal information from publicly available sources (such as social media) and then send emails that appear to be genuine. Victims feel like they were written by familiar or reputable organizations.
Most often, phishing scams use emails with malicious links or files. If you click on them, your device may be infected with a virus or redirected to a fake site designed to steal personal and financial information.
If a phishing email is poorly written, it is relatively easy to spot. But some cybercriminals use advanced tools like chatbots and AI-powered voice generators to make it difficult for victims to distinguish between genuine and fraudulent messages.
How to recognize phishing attempts
Recognizing phishing emails can be difficult, but we recommend paying attention to certain signs.
Common signs
Be careful if the sender sends suspicious addresses, uses a public email address, tries to instill fear or urgent action in you, asks for personal information, or makes spelling or grammatical errors. To check a URL, hover over the link without clicking on it.
Phishing attacks related to digital payments
Attackers often pretend to be well-known online payment services such as PayPal, Venmo or Wise. During phishing scams, scammers send fake emails asking you to confirm your login information. If you receive such an email, be alert and report suspicious activity.
Phishing attacks related to finance
Sometimes scammers pretend to be representatives of banks or financial institutions and talk about alleged security violations. For example, they send fake emails about money transfers or credits. Attackers may also claim that a security update is urgently needed.
Work-related phishing attacks
Attackers may pose as executives or directors to convince victims to transfer money or purchase non-existent goods. They can even use AI-powered voice generators to make phone calls.
How to avoid becoming a victim of phishing?
To protect yourself from phishing attacks, you must follow security measures. Do not click on links directly; instead, check the accuracy of the information on the company's official website or through its channels. Try connecting security tools such as antivirus programs, firewalls, and spam filters.
Organizations should use email authentication to validate incoming emails. Common methods include DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) and DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance).
Individuals are advised to warn family and friends about the possibility of phishing. It is important for companies to educate employees on how to protect themselves from phishing and conduct regular training to reduce risks.
If you need help or more information, seek help from organizations like the Anti-Phishing Working Group Inc or take advantage of government initiatives such as OnGuardOnline.gov. They offer detailed resources and guidance on how to detect, prevent, and report phishing attacks.
Types of Phishing
Phishing methods are constantly improving, and cybercriminals use advanced solutions in their schemes. In general, phishing is divided into types depending on the purpose and direction of the attack. Let's take a closer look.
Clone phishing
The attacker takes a previously sent genuine email, copies it and pastes a link to a malicious site. The scammer may pretend to be the official sender and claim that the link has been updated or replaced because the previous one had an error or expired.
Spear phishing
This type of attack targets one person or organization. Spear phishing is considered more sophisticated because it involves attackers pre-characterizing the victim. First, they learn important information about her (for example, the names of friends or relatives), and then use this data to lure the victim to a malicious site or convince her to download a file.
Farming
An attacker modifies a Domain Name System (DNS) entry so that visitors are redirected to a fake site instead of a legitimate one. This type of attack is considered the most dangerous because users cannot control DNS records and therefore protect themselves.
Whaling
A form of spear phishing that targets wealthy and important people such as corporate executives and government officials.
Email address spoofing
These phishing emails imitate messages from real companies or people. At the same time, attackers send links to malicious sites with fake authorization pages - if you enter your credentials on them, scammers will receive them. These pages may contain Trojans, keyloggers, and other malicious scripts designed to steal personal information.
Redirection to sites
In these schemes, when the user navigates to the real site, they are taken to a different URL. The attacker uses vulnerabilities in the code to redirect the victim or install malware on his computer.
Typesquatting
Typesquatting directs traffic to fake sites that deliberately make common mistakes in their names, replace letters with a foreign layout, and use subtle variations of upper and lower case. Attackers use domains to imitate official websites and trick users into typing or misreading URLs.
Fake paid ads
Paid ads are another type of phishing. Attackers create fake domains that resemble official ones and pay for promotion in search results. As a result, the fraudulent site may even appear at the top of Google search results.
Attacks at the watering hole
During a watering hole attack, scammers analyze users and identify frequently visited sites. They then check such sites for vulnerabilities and try to inject malicious scripts into them to harm visitors.
Impersonation and fake hoaxes
Sometimes scammers pose as social media influencers. For example, they introduce themselves as company executives and convince them to take some action, such as registering for a sweepstakes. Such schemes use an individual approach with social engineering and look for gullible users. Fraudsters can even hack verified accounts and change usernames to impersonate a real, verified identity.
Recently, scammers have been actively using platforms such as Discord, X and Telegram for this purpose.
Malicious applications
Fraudsters may use malicious apps that track users' activities and steal their sensitive information. These could be price trackers, wallets and other tools related to cryptocurrencies. At the same time, attackers are targeting users interested in the crypto space.
Phishing by phone
Scammers may call, text or voicemail to convince victims to share personal information.
Phishing and pharming
Some consider pharming to be a type of phishing, but their principles differ. The main difference is that the phishing victim must make a mistake. And when pharming, the user simply goes to the official website and does not suspect that the attackers have changed the DNS record in the domain.
Phishing in the field of blockchain and cryptocurrencies
Although blockchain provides strong data security due to decentralization, users should be wary of social engineering and phishing. Often, cybercriminals take advantage of the gullibility of others to gain access to private keys or credentials. In most cases, scammers rely on the human factor.
They can also trick users into revealing a seed phrase or transferring funds to a fake address. Be careful and follow safety precautions.
In conclusion
To protect your personal and financial information, you need to understand the principles of phishing and keep up with developments in fraud technology. Use reliable security measures, study the techniques of attackers and follow the news. Protect your assets with SAFU and other solutions!
Recommended reading
5 Tips for Protecting Cryptocurrencies
Five Ways to Increase Your Binance Account Security
Ensuring security in peer-to-peer (P2P) trading
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