Phishing reaches biggest increase ever
Phishing reaches biggest increase ever
Phishing has risen worldwide by 500 percent since January, the biggest recorded increase in history, according to message filtering firm SurfControl.
In addition, the company has also warned people to beware of a new dirty trick being used by brand spoof spammers, which is more sophisticated than past fake efforts.
The latest scam involves using a fake address bar that appears in an email recipient's web browser and looks even more legitimate than the spoof did in the past.
Ursula Redford, marketing manager for SurfControl said. "It is very hard to stop this increase in phishing. More spoofers are beginning to realise how much they can get away with and this is why more and more of them are trying it with smarter ways of conning users.
"The best way we can minimise the risk is through education and attaching anti-spam systems. We need to tell more people never to give their password away over the Internet if an email message requires it. The more people who know about this, the less likely it will be for these phishing scams to be successful."
Redford also says that more companies should use anti-spam filtering systems in the work place, because most people will use Internet banking at work.
She added. "If companies prevent these spam emails getting through at the work place, this will block a big gateway for these spoofers to attack."
The number of unique scams from 33 to 155 in the first five months of the year. The lastest brand spoof spam, identified by SurfControl on May 12, is one of the most sophisticated examples the company has seen, according to Susan Larson, SurfControl's vice president for global content. "Brand spoof scammers are continuing to make clever use of technology to make scams look more and more legitimate and con people into providing personal financial information.
"The emergence of this new technique clearly shows how lucrative this type of fraud is and why spammers are so determined to bilk unwary Internet users out of their money and personal identities."
SurfControl's policy of education for users includes telling people to never volunteer confidential information in response to an unsolicited email; never follow a link to a suspicious email; ensure that all anti-virus and operating system software is updated and configured with the most recent security updates and monitor Internet and spam security information resources.
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