TIPS TO DEAL WITH PHISHING ATTACK

The word "Burisma" is all over the news right now - it's a Ukrainian energy company that, according to some claims, was raided by Russian hackers looking for confidential data to steal.

As you can imagine, the way the hackers got in is supposed to be through phishing attacks.

Tips to deal with phishing attack
The phishing, briefly defined, is when a cybercriminal tricks him into revealing something that should have been saved electronically for you.

The good news is that most of us have learned to spot obvious phishing attacks these days.

The bad news is that you can't reliably detect phishing attacks just by keeping an eye out for obvious mistakes or by relying on criminals to say "Dear customer" instead of using your name.

You need to beware of targeted phishing, often called spear-phishing, where criminals make a genuine effort to tailor each phishing email, for example, customizing it for both you and your business. The spear-phishing, where fake emails are really credible, is not just a problem for high - profile victims as Burismas of the world. Acquiring the specific data needed to generate personalized phishing emails is easier than you might think, and much of the data collection can be automated.

So here are our 5 tips for dealing with phishing attacks, especially if you are faced with a criminal who is willing to put in the time and effort to earn your trust rather than just hitting you with those "Dear Customer" emails:

1. Do not hesitate just because a correspondent seems to know a lot about you

Someone who has never met you, and who never will, can nevertheless easily project himself as a "connoisseur": a friend of a friend, perhaps, or a colleague with whom you have worked electronically but have never met face to face expensive. . With a combination of information gathered from data breaches that are already public, social media profiles, and historical emails you sent or received, even a criminal with modest funds and without much technical experience can sound much more convincing than "Dear customer."

2. Do not press to send data just because the other person tells you that it is urgent

Many email scams work because the criminal gains your trust or makes you think they are someone who is high on your own company's org chart, and then emphasizes how urgent the task you have just been given is. Often times, they will also resort to flattery by explaining why they are asking you and not anyone else, and they will make it clear to you that the task is confidential and therefore you should not discuss it with anyone else. Never treat as prudent that the other person is demanding total secrecy, treat him as a suspect.

3. Do not trust the details provided by the sender when you consult them

You'd think scammers would go to great lengths to dissuade you from controlling them, but sometimes they will not only appreciate it, but will actively urge you to call or message them, or visit their website, as part of the scam.

If you call them back at the phone number they gave you, or send them a message through the website they provided, you are simply offering them an opportunity to tell you the same lies that they want you to hear.

(This is why financial institutions print your emergency contact numbers on the back of your bank card and post them on their ATM welcome screens - those fonts are much more difficult for criminals to manipulate.)

4. Do not follow the instructions on how to view an email that appears within the email itself

A common ruse is for criminals to hide malicious content, such as data stealing software called macros, within innocent-looking document files, and then insert the "document" with instructions on how to view it "correctly" by changing various security settings.

Usually the instructions sound plausible enough, but criminals are tricking you into disabling security features that would keep you safe.

5. Don't be afraid of getting a second opinion

If you've ever asked your colleagues to correct your documents or emails, they will often have found errors that you can't believe you missed.

That's because a second opinion is very helpful.

In fact, that is the main reason criminals urge you not to tell anyone what you are doing, to prevent you from getting a second opinion and thereby discovering them.

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