Phishing attacks are one of the most common cyber threats that businesses face. Phishing is the cause of 91% of successful data breaches, according to KnowBe4. This tactic is popular among cyber criminals due to its alarming success rate.

What is phishing?

Phishing is a technique used by an attacker to lure their target into revealing sensitive information by sending realistic emails, texts, and phone calls that appear to be from a credible source. Without looking closely or paying attention to details, the target can easily fall for the attacker’s fraudulent message.

How to Detect Phishing

To prevent phishing, it’s crucial to train your employees to spot suspicious emails. There are a few things to look out for when you receive an email, even if it appears to come from a trusted source, such as your company.

1. The overall look of the email is off – If the email implies that it comes from a trusted brand but the messaging, brand colors, or fonts look unfamiliar, the email is likely fraudulent.
2. Look closely at the sender’s address and subject line – If the domain name is misspelled, that is a key indicator the email is not coming from a credible source. Always check the sender’s email address and subject line before you click any links or disclose information.
3. The message is poorly written or unprofessional – If the message contains misspellings, poor grammar, or the language seems off, that is a key indicator the email is suspicious. Unprofessional emails are a major red flag, especially if they seem to come from a credible source.
4. The email contains suspicious links or attachments – Fraudulent links and attachments may have odd spellings or unexpected mashups of a company’s name.

Never open a link or attachment from an email you are not expecting.

Training is Essential

Human error was involved in 82% of data breaches in the last year, according to a 2022 Data Breach Investigations Report by Verizon. It’s essential that all employees and end users are trained to spot fraudulent emails and messages in order to keep your organization’s data secure.

When you partner with Lloyd, we deploy realistic but fake phishing emails to your employees in order to see how they respond. Our phishing testing is designed to help your team learn how to spot phishing emails and the appropriate way to handle them.

Contact us to learn more about how our rigorous cybersecurity and risk assessment offerings work to increase your resilience against cyber threats.

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