Phishing scams occur all the time, and in many cases, they spread through email. As you open your inbox and go through your messages, be careful about opening up suspicious emails and take these steps if you come upon one that doesn’t seem quite right:
- Be careful about what you click – Even if someone you trust, like your best friend or your mom, sends you a link in an email, be careful about clicking on it, especially if the text in the email is suspicious or doesn’t sound like something the sender would say. Cybercriminals and spammers increasingly resort to spear phishing with familiar contacts, which make victims click on links that download malicious software.
- Make multifactor identification your friend—Today, many social media, email, and banking services offer multifactor identification, so you should use it whenever possible. This is incredibly important when you use an unrecognized device, as it will ask you to enter a code texted to your phone.
- Change your passwords – Unfortunately, there’s not always a way to avoid a phishing attack. If you’ve been hacked, change all your passwords to something you’ve never used before. Start with your email account because your inbox is often the first tool hackers use to try and break into other accounts. Make your passwords distinctive, long, and based on something obscure, like movie quotes or song lyrics.
- Report it – If you’re aware of a phishing attack, report it to Google right away. All you have to do is click the down arrow in the top right corner of your inbox and hit the button that says “Report Phishing.”
At GeeksPeopleLike.com, we realize what a threat phishing is to you on a personal and professional level. For help protecting your business against cybercriminals and the effects of phishing, contact us today.