We here at 1-800 Show Me How want to help you discover ways to use your computer so that you can enjoy yourself, yet at the same time safeguard yourself from the sharks lurking in the waters of the Internet. In today’s news, we want to enlighten you as to particulars of “what is a Phishing scam?”Do not let the words phishing scam frighten you but instead make use of this opportunity to understand and take responsibility for what you do or don’t do on the Internet by becoming more informed
Right now, our focus is on the definition of phishing.
What is Phishing?
The definition of phishing is a scam designed to trick you into giving personal information like credit card details or passwords to a con person or scammer.
Examples of Phishing
Con people have become extremely sophisticated in how they embark on their phishing expeditions’.
Just how do they do this? Well, they set up phony websites and duplicate the logos or designs from the legitimate websites. Take your bank, for instance. The “phishers” will send you an email pretending to be the bank. You open and read the email. Somewhere within the body of the email you may be asked to ‘click here’ to make sure that your account details are correct. Or another ruse they try is to notify you that you need to change your password.
Main point here is this, NEVER click on these links or open an attachment on any email coming from a financial institution or business that is seeking personal information from you! Your bank will never request this information from you in an email.
Phishing can also be regarded as identity theft or identity fraud. Why? Because the information they trick you into giving them can be used gain access to your accounts or utilized in other types of identity theft.
So now you know how to define phishing; let’s share with you methods to determine a phishing scam.
Phishing Techniques Used to Scam the Innocent
There are various ways to help you recognize if a website or email is fraudulent (fake or Web Forgery).
Look for phrases such as these:
- “Verify your account” – Legitimate banks and businesses will never ask that you verify an account or account details in an email. Should you receive an email that asks you to verify your account, immediately report it to your financial institution. NEVER use the contact details on the email either, as it will likely be fake as well and will almost certainly go straight to the scammers. Contact your branch by calling the number found on your statement or use the Internet White Pages to obtain your bank’s phone number. http://www.whitepages.com/
- “If you don’t respond within 48 hours, your account will be closed.” – These individuals will stop at absolutely nothing to get your attention along with your details. They create a sense of emergency and urgency. Do not fall for it! Even when they act like they’re helping you by telling you that your account has been compromised…don’t buy into it.
- “Dear Valued Customer” - Don’t know your name? Close the email. Those that are ‘phishing’ often send emails in large quantities and just hope they strike it lucky with a few unsuspecting individuals. Don’t become one of them. Your own financial institution will always address you with your name connected with your account.
- “Click the link below to gain access to your account.” – Emails you may possibly receive can contain links or forms that you can fill out just like you’d fill out a form on a web site. How these people trick you is that the links they will tell you to click on will most likely include the name of your financial institution or credit card company. But when you click the link it takes you to a bogus site set up specifically to obtain your information in a fraudulent manner.
How to Protect Yourself from Phishing Scams
First and foremost is to be aware. The second thing is to be sure that your antivirus program protects you against spy ware that could try to steal your personal information.
Browsers such as Internet Explorer and Firefox have anti-phishing protection. Note: Always be sure to have the most recent version of these browsers to stay current and up to date. If you use a different browser, it’s a good idea to visit the main website and confirm they offer phishing protection.
Lastly, the best advice we can give you to protect yourself against internet phishing is this: If you get a suspicious email always contact your financial institution or credit card company or forward the entire email to them before proceeding further. Always better to be safe than sorry.
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