Phishing scams involve posing as a trusted entity to coerce the target into volunteering personal data that can be used for further cybercrimes. These schemes often involve fictitious emails and websites that contain malware or request private information.
By employing phishing tactics, cyber criminals can steal more than just your credentials; they can take your entire identity. By obtaining your private information, perpetrators can access your finances, take over your accounts, and even create fake identities.
These scams hold the power to ruin an individual’s life, but there are ways you can prevent them from happening and mitigate the damage if they’ve already arisen. Knowing the common tactics and resources available to victims is essential to avoiding identity theft via phishing.
What Are the Most Common Phishing Tactics?
The different forms of phishing are classified based on the means in which the scammer reaches you. However, they all share the same goal of obtaining the target’s private data. Below are some of the more common ways a phishing scammer may try to steal your identity:
- Email Scams: Scammers may gain access to your email and basic information through a data breach, allowing them to craft a convincing phishing email that appears to come from a service provider you use.
- Fake Website/Login Pages: Perpetrators may also send you to a lookalike website that imitates a legitimate company’s page and access steal login credentials. This often accompanies other forms of phishing like email scams and smishing.
- Smishing (SMS Phishing) & Vishing (Phone Call Scams): Similarly to email scams, the perpetrator contacts you either through a call or text and employs social engineering strategies to pry private information out of you.
- Social Media Phishing: A cybercriminal may send you a DM posing as a brand or influencer with an enticing offer such as a collaboration. This has become easier with Twitter Blue’s verification check purchase feature.
If you’ve been attacked in any of these ways or are facing any other form of cybercrime, you can report it through the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.
Three Warning Signs of Phishing Attempts
Across the various avenues which phishing scams can occur, there are some consistent tells which can tip off a potential attempt. Recognizing these signs can help you prevent identity theft and thwart a phishing scam before it starts.
- Unexpected emails asking for personal info: If you haven’t recently requested a password reset but received an email asking for your login or personal information, there’s a good chance it’s a scammer.
- Poor grammar, urgent requests, and suspicious links: Be wary of emails containing spelling errors, awkward phrasing, relentless pushes for you to disclose data, and attachments that don’t look right. It likely came from a scammer trying to digitally steal your identity rather than a legitimate organization.
- URLS that don’t match the company’s site: Scammers can hide malicious links within hyperlink text that appears the same as the legit URL. Hovering over a link without clicking it can show you its true destination.
Protecting Yourself From Phishing Attacks
In addition to understanding the tactics used by scammers and the warnings that come with them, there are actions you can take to protect yourself from phishing attacks. Taking the proper security measures can prohibit a cybercriminal from stealing your identity online.
- Email & Website Safety: Utilize email detection features and avoid opening attachments and links that you aren’t certain of. Make sure websites you use are secure by looking for HTTPS in the URL. If you believe an email seems fishy, you can copy the text and enter it in a search engine to see if any similar verbiage has appeared in reported scams.
- Two-Factor Authentication: Enable multiple forms of verification whenever it is available. This will ensure that a scammer cannot access your accounts and commit identity theft even if their phishing scheme successfully obtained your passwords.
- Keeping Personal Information Private: Do not share any private information with any online recipients whose identity you can’t confirm. It is in your best interest to have a zero-trust policy and conduct extensive confirmation of the true sender of any messages you receive.
- Consistently Update Passwords: Even if you do all of the above, there is still a chance your data could be breached due to security shortcomings of legitimate corporations. As such, it is good practice to utilize a password manager and regularly update your login credentials.
Did You Fall for a Phishing Scam? Contact Digital Forensics Corp.
If you’ve had your data and identity stolen through a phishing scam, DFC is here to help. Our team of experts has extensive experience handing cases just like yours, allowing us to develop techniques to fight back.
We can analyze the metadata in email headers and uncover the true identity of the scammer who is contacting you. Our ability to track IP addresses enables us to locate these cybercriminals, and our connections with law enforcement agencies around the globe can help connect you with the proper authorities to take legal action.
If you’ve fallen victim to a phishing scam, start taking back control right away. Contact our Blackmail Helpline for a free consultation with one of our experts today.
DISCLAIMER: THIS POST IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSIDERED LEGAL ADVICE ON ANY SUBJECT MATTER. DIGITAL FORENSICS CORP. IS NOT A LAWFIRM AND DOES NOT PROVIDE LEGAL ADVICE OR SERVICES. By viewing posts, the reader understands there is no attorney-client relationship, the post should not be used as a substitute for legal advice from a licensed professional attorney, and readers are urged to consult their own legal counsel on any specific legal questions concerning a specific
