Phishing Scams – What can you do about them?

Phishing scams are typically fraudulent email messages appearing to come from legitimate enterprises. These messages usually direct you to a spoofed website or otherwise get you to divulge private information (e.g., passphrase, credit card, or other account updates). The perpetrators then use this private information to commit theft. The best defense against phishing attempts is to educate everyone on staff. Here are some tips.

• Be suspicious of unsolicited phone calls, visits, or email messages from individuals asking about employees or other internal information. If an unknown individual claims to be from a legitimate organization, try to verify his or her identity directly with the company.

• Do not provide personal information or information about your organization, including its structure or networks, unless you are certain of a person's authority to have the information.

• Do not reveal personal or financial information in email, and do not respond to email solicitations for this information. This includes following links sent in email.

• Don't send sensitive information over the Internet before checking a website's security.

• Pay attention to the URL of a website. Malicious websites may look identical to a legitimate site, but the URL may use a variation in spelling or a different domain (e.g., .com vs. .net).

• If you are unsure whether an email request is legitimate, try to verify it by contacting the company directly. Do not use contact information provided on a website connected to the request; instead, check previous statements for contact information.

• Mark the email as spam/junk

• Make sure your antivirus is up to date and run a full scan