Phishing has been around since the early days of the Internet. It’s an old scam that hackers keep coming back to because it works so well. It is essentially a social engineering attack, where a cybercriminal emails you pretending to be someone they’re not.
They might pose as your bank or online payment service provider and ask you to provide them with your username and password, or some other sensitive information. If you give away that information, the hacker can log into your account, steal your money and wreak havoc on your life in many ways.
That’s why it’s important for everyone to understand what phishing is and how to avoid falling for these common hacker tricks.
What is phishing?
Phishing is the attempt to acquire sensitive information from users by masquerading as a trustworthy source. The most common type of phishing scam targets people looking to make online purchases by tricking them into handing over their credit card or bank account information.
Phishing emails often appear to come from retailers like Amazon or Walmart or seem to be notifications from banks about unclaimed funds. The emails try to direct recipients to visit a website that looks legitimate but is actually created by scammers who are trying to steal their information.
Each year, millions of people fall victim to phishing scams. An individual may receive dozens of phishing emails in a single day. In some cases,…
