Hello everyone👋, greetings to you all. I hope everyone is doing great. Today we're continuing our series on cybersecurity tips for staying safe online and remember we talked about the importance and tips for creating strong passwords to stay safe online by keeping all online accounts secure. If you missed that blog, no worries, you can catch up on it HERE
Today I want to dive into another important aspect of cybersecurity, that is "PHISHING ATTACKS" which is going on these days by the cyber criminals.
Now let's dive in to know what phishing is and how it works.
WHAT EXACTLY IS PHISHING?
Imagine you're fishing with a net, trying to catch some fish. Phishing is similar, but instead of catching fish, cyber criminals try to catch your personal information like your passwords, credit card details, or even your identity.
HOW PHISHING ATTACKS WORK
Picture this: you receive an email that looks like it's from your bank, asking you to update your account information urgently otherwise your account would be closed. The email might contain a link that takes you to a fake website that is similar to your bank's site. But here's the catch - immediately you enter your details, you're actually handing them over to the cybercriminals. That's how phishing attack is done.
HOW TO SPOT A PHISHING ATTEMPT
So, how can you tell if something is a phishing attack? Look out for these signs:
URGENT REQUEST: Sometimes when you get an email or text message asking you to "Act Now!" or "Your account will be closed", you have to be vigilant because it may be a phishing attack.
MISMATCHED URLs: Check the web address carefully. Sometimes, it might look almost the same as a real website, but with a small change to trick you.😀 Now let's do a quick analysis here. Is there a difference between "apple.com" and "appIe.com"?🤔 Yes, there is a big difference between them, one is a legit site and the other is a fake site.
The trick here is that, what you see as "L" in the second one is not "L" but rather capital "I" which looks the same as small letter "l" (L). So with this, the first "apple.com" is the legit site and the second one is fake.SPELLING AND GRAMMATICAL ERRORS: Legitimate companies or websites usually have professinal-looking emails. If you spot lots of typos, grammatical errors or even strange language, it could be a phishing attempt.
HOW TO STAY SAFE
Now, here are some tips I personally take into consideration to keep my self safe from phishing attacks. You can also try it out.
THINK BEFORE YOU CLICK: If your email or message seems suspicious, "DON'T CLICK" on any links or download any attachments.
VERIFY THE SOURCE: If you're not sure if an email is legit, contact the company directly using a phone number or website you trust.
STAY INFORMED: Keep up to date with the latest scams and security tips to stay one step ahead of the hackers.
CHECK THE URLs: What I normally do is that, when I receive any suspicious link, I copy that link, (NB: Don't click but copy) and paste the URL in this website called VIRUS TOTAL and hit search. When it's not a legit site, it will flag the URL as malicious.
Lastly, always keep in mind that staying safe online is all about being vigilant and listening to your gut. If something seems too good to be true or doesn't feel right, it's better to be safe than sorry!
By following these tips, you can stay one step ahead of phishing attacks and keep your personal information safe and secure.
That's it for today's cybersecurity lesson.
Stay tuned for more cybersecurity tips and tricks, and remember to share this with your friends and family so they can stay safe too and feel free to leave comments, or suggestions and also your questions in the comment section.
Let's continue this journey together to get more insights and valuable information on cybersecurity. Together we can outsmart those cybercriminals!😂😀💻
See you in my next blog as we continue the cybersecurity lesson.
Thank you.🙏👋
NB: Image source-Microsoft Bing