What is Phishing? Once upon a time, reading an article with this title, just meant bad spelling, now it’s cybercrime (phishing). Just like fishing, where you throw a bait alluring fish into a fake snack, cybercriminals cast messages, enticing you to “bite the bait” and expose your own private data. Impersonating a known and trusted […]
What is Phishing?
Once upon a time, reading an article with this title, just meant bad spelling, now it’s cybercrime (phishing). Just like fishing, where you throw a bait alluring fish into a fake snack, cybercriminals cast messages, enticing you to “bite the bait” and expose your own private data.
Impersonating a known and trusted brand/entity, you get a message stating that an action (most of the times extremely urgent) from you is needed, which in reality and if you are not aware, is to voluntarily supply confidential information like username, password, security personal numbers, etc. Just like the fisherman uses the natural instinct in fish and its perpetual search for a feeding opportunity, cybercrooks use the natural instinct in humans to stay out of trouble!
Types of Phishing
Different groups categorise types of phishing in different ways, but we all agree that these email messages are all spam with specific nasty goals.
I will use my own categories: broadcasting and narrowcasting, but will indicate common nominated terminologies fitting within my own categories:
Broadcasting
It works similarly to cast nets. Fishermen toss the net at random to collect whatever comes. In this category it is included any phishing attack with the same context of “throw all and see what comes back”!
Narrowcasting
It is a specific message, to a specific audience for a specific purpose which is likely to be a more efficient and so, the most used nowadays.
Spear Phishing
I would describe as a segmented phishing attack, i.e. sent to a specific audience like a group of people with something in common (the employer, webmail, social network, bank, etc).
Clone Phishing
It consists into cloning the basic elements of a genuine previous sent message and therefore, to convince recipients of its authenticity and as a consequence, its trustworthy request.
Whaling
Finally, the most refined segmented: whaling, which targets high-profile individuals (within society and /or a company/organisation).
Conclusion
Now that you got the idea of what phishing actually is, do you feel a fish in the lake, or maybe you are at sea, swimming away from boats between the waves?
Don’t bite the bait!
P.S. Do you already know what smishing is?
Find out what smishing is and how to spot the bait on my next article on smishing!
Email Deliverability Expert
It is very important that each and everybody should know about the phishing. this is the only way to prevent this kind of scam. Every day many people are losing their money for this phishing.