BotNet News

Phishing is a type of cyber attack in which criminals trick people into giving away private information, including passwords and bank account numbers, through email or text message links. It’s a common threat, but organizations can teach employees to recognize the red flags of phishing messages and protect themselves.

Look out for grammatical errors, spelling mistakes and odd formatting. Legitimate emails from banks, credit card companies, payment services and the IRS do not contain these errors, so if a message looks different it may be a red flag.

Urgency and threatening language are also common phishing tactics, trying to cause people to panic and cloud their judgment. This can include warnings that an account will be deleted if not responded to immediately or claiming they have been hacked and are under arrest.

Employees should never click on links in email or respond to requests for personal information via email, but instead should use secure methods like calling a colleague directly or using an online search to verify the legitimacy of the request. They should also be wary of odd business requests that seem out of the ordinary and not in line with standard company policy.

Organizations can also encourage staff to keep software and devices updated as security patches are released to close vulnerabilities that attackers often exploit. This helps prevent cyber attacks by reducing the amount of data hackers can steal from outdated systems. They can also train their staff to report phishing attempts, which is a key factor in blocking phishing emails and preventing successful cyber attacks.