HOW TO PREVENT PHISHING?

Phishing is the most dangerous activity globally when we talk about cybercrimes. Such attacks occur when a hacker acts as a worthy and known contact and hunts for your sensitive data through spam-filled links or emails. Clicking the malicious link or downloading the malicious file can damage an organization badly. Such spams prove to be very costly on the pockets of the victims.

Phishing attacks are very profitable for the hackers as they could end up bringing loads of cash in the shape of ransom. Moreover, thousands of users become victims of this phishing attack as it is one of the most common cyberattacks. However, these attacks are easy to prevent. All one has to do is avoid certain things.

Before we learn how to prevent phishing attacks, let’s learn the 5 most common types of phishing.

5 MOST COMMON TYPES OF PHISHING

Knowing the types of phishing and what it causes can help many users identify the probable attack’s magnitude. Below are the types of phishing attacks:

1. Email Phishing

Most of the phishing activity is carried out through emails. The hacker imitates a representative of an authentic organization, and his actions do not look suspicious at first. Fake links and multiple requests are generated from the hacker’s side. Such links and requests help the attackers to get the desired results.

2. Spear Phishing

In this type of phishing, the attackers are already aware of the recipient’s details. They receive the recipients’ personal information via multiple other tricks and try to convince the recipients in the best way possible. Cyber attackers portray that they are authentic representatives of any particular organization. Such cyber attackers even know their receiver’s designation and greet them in the same way. The possible information that these attackers possess:

Receiver’s name
Job title
Email address
The company in which the receiver works

3. Angler phishing

Angler phishing is a form of phishing that targets social media users. By injecting malicious links, comments, and messages into various social media platforms, cyber attackers of today can hack into the social media accounts of multiple users. Newly-formed organizations these days are moving digitally in just a matter of months. Thus, this type of phishing can harm the social media platforms of many businesses. Unfortunately, major companies still do not know how to prevent phishing.

4. Smishing and vishing

This type of phishing involves fraudulent emails, texting users, and obtain sensitive information. Such activity causes the users to lose a hefty amount. These attackers usually operate by informing the victims that their private accounts or other sensitive data have been leaked. They portray themselves like bankers or any other representative. Those who fall into the trap of such false alerts have to pay a heavy price in the future.

5. Whaling

These attacks are mostly targeted at executive personnel of any organization. The core aim of this attack is to hit any organization from its core. The techniques and ways of carrying out these whaling attacks are similar to that of regular phishing attacks. However, the whaling attacks are more carefully dealt with by the attackers. In this case, the hackers act as senior staff and try to trick directors and other executives of an organization. Thus, learning how to prevent phishing is essential.

Phishing attacks can cause heavy damage to companies and their critical assets, thus leading to further complications. Therefore, after highlighting the types of phishing attacks, prevention of such attacks should also be highlighted, and below are a few preventive ways to control phishing attacks:

Identifying the phishing scams

Most phishing attacks look similar, and such similarities can be easily be identified through proper observation and analysis. The business owners must pay attention to detail and figure out probable attacks even before they occur. A thorough study online can also help you figure out the latest phishing attacks and their dangers. Completely free add-ons are also available on the internet that assists major businesses in highlighting potential phishing attacks.

Avoid clicking suspicious links

It’s never to click a link and enter the desired domain, as most of the time, such links are filled with scams. Major organizations ask their employees not to share links. At times, a spam-filled email with a link can cause massive damage to the company. The receivers of phishing emails should avoid visiting such links and move directly to the site.

Alter passwords regularly

Site owners must keep rotating their passwords to secure their multiple accounts. These site owners create multiple accounts on various platforms, and most of such accounts are created on paid platforms. Your accounts can get compromised without your knowledge and cause major problems; therefore, a constant changing of passwords helps secure such unauthorized access.

Ignore providing private information

Once you are a hundred percent sure about a particular site and its safety, you should only provide any critical or personal information. For example, people usually provide their card information and other private details on multiple websites. Ensuring that the website is genuine should be your first step before providing any personal or important data.

Avoid visiting websites that do not start with “https,” as such websites are not secure enough. Even though visiting a site without “https” initials can be important at times, providing any sensitive data is a significant threat, and the users must avoid it.

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