Attackers Go Phishing In Deeper Waters
from the personalized-scams dept
It's not just iTunes and Amazon that are exploiting the 'long tail', online scammers get it as well. Typically, phishing attacks attempt to confuse people by mimicking a well-known brand, like PayPal or Citibank. But as more people get clued into the fact that an email purporting to come from PayPal may not be the real thing, attackers have had to move onto smaller brands. In the last year, the number of brands targeted by attackers has doubled, and this number is growing at a double digit monthly clip. As in other long tail case studies, it's the low costs of internet activity that allows attackers to go after small niches. So far, the attack with the narrowest scope we've heard about is one that goes after JFK conspiracy theorists, claiming to be from a dying KGB agent with some previously undisclosed information about the murder. Whatever your tastes or interests, there will one day be a scam specifically targeted for you.
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criticism
the proper spelling is "spell"....
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Re: criticism
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Post something on topic?
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You all git an F
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They Killed Kenny!!
So, sarcasm isn't a victimless crime after all...expect a letter...soon.
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it's the problem with email
Pretty much the worse form of communication as there is no standard form of authentication and verification. This was known to be a problem 10 years ago, but still probably won't be fixed for 10 more years.
Spam, malicious software writers and Phisihing scams take advantage of this and will continue to cause trouble until email is fixed.
Longing for the days of domain keys.
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Back to the point
I had an experience not long ago whereby my bank had sent me an email that looked all the world to be a phishing scam. The mail wanted me to click on a link, that didn't go to their website, and logon to setup a feature. I assumed it to be fake but upon checking the new domain I discovered the domain holder was a reputable banking data management company. Shortly afterward the bank called me directly for another matter and I quizzed her on it. She admitted it did indeed originate from their bank, that it was an automatic process (so no-one sat down and wrote this by hand) and that this was just business as usual. I discussed the ease in which this could (will) be exploited someday and she intended to speak to their IT.
My point being you must be very vigilant as even supposed 'safe' emails could be manipulated. Just think of all those who clicked and logged on without giving it a thought.
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Re: Back to the point
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Re: it's the problem with email
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