Phishing is the most popular form of fraud that aims to dupe victims into believing they are at a trusted Web site such as their bank or an online retailer. In fact, the victim is redirected to a bogus Web site that intends to steal their identity and steal their financial resources.

If you think you cannot be fooled, think again. These cyber crooks are getting smarter everyday and are using techniques that even some security professionals have been victimized by these online crimes. You can have the best security software and even that will not keep you out of harm’s way.

What is Phishing?

Phishing is an online con game, and Phishers are tech-savvy con artists and identity thieves. They use spam, fake Web sites, crimeware and other techniques to trick people into divulging sensitive information.

How can you stay protected?

The most important thing to know is how to spot a fake website or email. The first and foremost thing to look for is the URL (Web address). Phishers will hide the URL using anchor text, this is when you add a hyperlink to a word such as; Message from Chase Bank. At first glance, you see the words Chase Bank and you may think that this is a real message from your financial institution, but let’s take a closer look.

If you mouse over the anchor text you will see that the URL (Web Address) doesn’t go to chase.com, but to another website. I used techjaws.com as an example.

Example

Using Anchor text

Phishers are crafty and will use other tricks such as registering and using a domain name that looks like it’s from a reputable company. For example, about a few months ago I received an email from Paypal.com asking me to confirm my account details. When I looked at who it came from, I noticed the email domain was contact@peypal.com. This is very close to the legitimate website PayPal, but spelled differently. It’s very common that Phishers will create websites that look like the legitimate website by stealing logos and content.

To protect yourself further, I highly recommend downloading the WOT (Web of Trust) add-on for IE and/or Firefox. The WOT add-on warns you about risky sites before you click.

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