The reality of living in today’s business landscape is you will eventually be targeted by phishing emails or social engineering attacks. The days of an email from a Nigerian Prince looking for an investment has passed, and social engineers have gotten much more sophisticated. That said, there are a few key indicators you can look out for to spot a potential phishing attack. In this blog, the experts at FX Technology will share a few signs to look out for to protect your business from attacks.
Check for Typos and Grammar Errors
Although phishing attacks have become more sophisticated, the reality is many phishing emails will still have typos, awkward language, or formatting errors. Legitimate businesses and organizations take care when crafting emails to their customers. Seeing grammatical errors in an email is a sure sign that the email is fraudulent.
Too Good to Be True Offers or Scare Tactics
Unfortunately, these emails can be difficult to differentiate from the spam emails that many businesses use. The reality is, ‘click-bait’ is seen as a valid form of marketing. That said, most phishing scams will request personal information in order to claim your prize. Beware of links or downloadable attachments — these are often scams.
Other scammers use the opposite approach and attempt to scare recipients into action. Emails claiming your account has been compromised with a link to recover are almost always malicious attempts at phishing for your information.
Requests for Personal Information
Reputable businesses will never ask for your personal information over email. Requests for your social security, passwords, or financial details should be an immediate red flag. If an email is requesting this information it is very likely to be a phishing scam.
Check the Email Address
A common phishing emails tactic scammers use it to camouflage their URL with a trusted URL. For instance, say you receive an email from what appears to be your bank. Make sure the email is coming from their system. More than likely the email will come from sender@yourbank.com, whereas a phishing email will appear as yourbank@gmail.com or yourbank@hotmail.com.
Remain Vigilant
A good rule of thumb is to be wary of any emails that seem the slightest bit sketchy. If something seems ‘off’ — it likely is. Remain vigilant and cautious when doing any business over email and you can help to prevent malicious attacks before they occur.
Trust FX Technology with Your Managed Security Services
The IT and security experts at FX Technology can help protect your business from security threats. Contact our team today at 417-895-9223 to learn more about our wide range of IT and managed security services.