Monday, October 20, 2014

How's your anti-phishing IQ?

On an average day, I routinely report anywhere from 6 to 12 email accounts to the appropriate authorities for phishing email activity. 

How is your anti-phishing email smarts??? 

Take this test to see how good you are at spotting these nefarious types of email!


Phishing IQ Test


By anyone's measurements, there is an ever increasing worldwide phishing epidemic. The reason I report so many email accounts for phishing activity on a daily basis is because I receive that many phishing emails each day. It's up to all of us to report these emails to assist the authorities in stemming this onslaught.

Phishing Email Q and A

Q. How do I report phishing emails?
A. Most often you would report phishing emails to the company or organization the email is pretending to be sent from. For example, emails claiming to be from Wells Fargo, Bank of America, or PayPal should be reported directly to them. A quick Google search "How do I report phishing emails to xxxx" will most often give you the correct way to report these types of enails.

Q. I don't even have an account with this company. Why shouldn't I just ignore the email instead of taking the time to report it?
A. That certainly is an option. However, even if you don't have an account, are you certain that one of your friends or relatives don't have an account there, and could be tricked by this same sort of phishing attempt? By reporting all phishing emails you also help protect others from being taken advantage of. We are all in this together, and phishing hurts everyone, directly and indirectly.

Q. What should I do if I think I may have responded to a phishing email by mistake?
A. Contact the company that has your account IMMEDIATELY. Explain the situation and follow their instructions on how to protect your account.

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