Phishing is a subset of a social engineering attack that has been wreaking havoc since the ’80s. Phishing can be done in many forms, but the end goal is the same – users are tricked into giving out sensitive information by fraudulent actors who masquerade as being legitimate. Many methods are used by these fraudulent actors to trick their users, and the common ones include spoofing, email links, pop-ups, and even phone calls. The sensitive information they seek includes usernames and passwords, social security numbers, credit cards, and other bank related information. Here are some major phishing scams you should know and various solutions on how to protect yourself against them;
Escroqueries par hameçonnage
This is one of the most common and most utilized phishing scams. An email phishing scam involves a malicious actor masquerading as someone important in a company or even some known celebrity who sends a fraudulent email to unsuspecting users. The email usually contains a link to a fake or spoofed website designed in a way that it looks similar to for instance the company website.
This fake website will then ask users to provide sensitive or Personally Identifiable Information (PII). Since it seems real, unsuspecting users will give out the information which might later be used for fraud and identity theft.
Protection :
- Do not open spam emails or even click links in emails without scrutiny
- Soyez prudent, vérifiez les adresses des liens et assurez-vous que les sites web que vous visitez commencent par HTTPS.
Escroqueries par hameçonnage
This is another popular phishing scam similar to email phishing, but this involves voice hence the name vishing. This occurs through phone calls in which malicious actors trick unsuspecting users into giving out sensitive information.
Protection :
- Vérifiez toujours que le numéro est légitime avant de donner des informations personnelles. La plupart des entreprises affichent leur numéro sur leur site web.
- Si l'appelant vous demande d'appeler un autre numéro, ne le faites pas.
Escroqueries au support technique
This is some type of vishing in which malicious actors call unsuspecting individuals claiming that they are from a tech/security organization. They then trick the individual into believing that there’s malware in their system and that they will take care of the problem if the individual installs some remote desktop connection software.
Si la victime installe le logiciel, les escrocs installent un logiciel malveillant et demandent ensuite à la victime de payer pour supprimer le logiciel malveillant.
Protection :
- Comme pour le vishing, confirmez le numéro de téléphone avant d'accepter d'autres instructions.
- N'autorisez jamais personne à accéder à votre ordinateur à distance.
Escroqueries par pop-up
Les fenêtres contextuelles sont des formes de publicité dans lesquelles une petite fenêtre riche en graphiques apparaît lorsque vous surfez sur l'internet. Elles contiennent généralement des liens vers d'autres contenus connexes.
Pop-ups can be dangerous especially when they are malicious. They can be intrusive, refuse to close and in turn open up several webpages. Other pop-ups may display a message warning you that your device is infected and entice you to click it for a free scan. They usually look legitimate, and most people fall for the trap.
Protection :
- Installez un bloqueur de publicités/de fenêtres publicitaires.
- N'autorisez que les fenêtres pop-up provenant de sites de confiance.
- Ne cliquez jamais sur des fenêtres pop-up.
Si vous avez été victime d'une escroquerie, faites ce qui suit ;
- Changez tous vos mots de passe,
- Contactez votre banque pour qu'elle prenne les mesures qui s'imposent ; et
- Recherchez les logiciels malveillants et les virus sur votre appareil.
Utiliser un VPN - IPBurger VPN
Malicious actors may intercept your internet traffic especially on public Wi-Fi and propagate phishing attacks via various methods such as spoofing. To be secure on public Wi-Fi, always use IPBurger VPN. IPBurger VPN uses best in class encryption standard – the AES 256 bit to encrypt your internet traffic and tunnel it through a secure server till it reaches its destination. This encryption ensures your internet traffic is not visible to prying eyes, such scammers.
