Protection Against Phishing Scams
It may not be a surprise to most people that 95% of all emails are spam. Most people are aware of the typical "spammy" style message that comes through to most people inbox's. However when you receive an official looking email from your bank, how are you to know if it's legitimate?
These emails are referred to as, phishing messages. Defined as a message deliberately encouraging you to a spoof webpage, often an exact clone of the target company. These pages are not held securely on the site you had been fooled to believing, therefore criminals can obtain any information you provide them through these pages.
Read our brief guide on how to beat these emails.
- Ensure you have automatic download of images turned of in your email client by default
Images can be fetched from a remote server, often with a tracking ID to identify that the email has been opened / read. Active email addresses are like gold for spammers, therefore any method to avoid disclosing you've read their message would be advised.
- Ignore any emails requesting you to visit a link to provide personal details
If you're unsure, manually type in the address of the institution you're trying to reach. Remember that login pages can be spoofed, so never disclose your password.
- Although messages may appear to be real, common mistakes are often found such as basic grammatical errors.
Another tail-tail sign, is that the email is often not very personable. Messages may start with "Dear Customer..." whereas a legitimate company, should great you by name.
- Check your bank statements regularly.
This is generally a good practice and not specific to phishing protection. Often people find they are paying twice or may spot accidental payments etc...
- Use a good email client with spam protection
Although you can never stop all spam messages, getting a good filter can cut the vast majority of spam emails. Just remember to occasionally check the junk folder to ensure no legitimate message have been marked as spam incorrectly.