As the business world becomes increasingly digitized, an ever-increasing number of cyber crimes are being perpetrated. One particularly insidious crime is phishing when someone attempts to steal sensitive information such as usernames, passwords, and credit card numbers. Unlike a virus or ransomware attack, which can cause your computer to behave erratically and become unusable, phishing scams are often tough to detect. Phishing is one of the most dangerous cyber crimes, but how has it changed over the years? Let’s look at some examples to see what new techniques cyber criminals have come up with over time.
1. Gaining the Victim’s Trust
The first evolution of phishing was the realization that perpetrators needed to instill trust in their victims before they could get them to give away their passwords. Over the years, scammers have only become more effective at this. As a result, phishing scams of all kinds have has become quite sophisticated, even in the most basic form. Fake websites are now being created that look exactly like the real thing, using realistic templates and designs. This makes for a phishing scam that is dangerously easy for the victim to fall for.
2. Gaining Access to Account Credentials
The next technique that phishing scam perpetrators began to implement was gaining access to seemingly sensitive accounts. This is especially dangerous because when an individual gives away their login details, hackers will often have access to other accounts if they are connected or if the credentials are reused. This scam has become more sophisticated nowadays, as victims often submit their login credentials through a fake form under the belief that they are accessing a real account. To get past fake verification questions and onto the actual site, users have now been asked to provide information such as credit card numbers and bank details.
3. Installing Malicious Computer Programs (Malware)
As the Internet has grown, so has the range of methods used by hackers. One type that is increasingly common in phishing attacks is malware. This can take the form of a program designed to spy on their victim’s activities and pass information back to a third party. As more and more people gain access to the Internet, it becomes more difficult for them to tell which sites are real and which are fake. Malware is also extremely hard for an individual to detect because it can be loaded onto your machine without you even knowing about it.
4. Changing the System’s Settings
The final method that the creators of phishing attacks have implemented is to change the system settings. This means that along with the malware, they can also gain control over some of the computer’s functions. This way, they can open up their victim’s email service and send messages to specific people. In this way, hackers can pretend to be someone they’re not.
Key Takeaway
These four ways phishing has changed over the past couple of years show that hackers have become more sophisticated daily. However, a lot can still be done to protect yourself from this kind of scam. First, make sure you never send sensitive information over a public Wi-Fi connection. If you need to make an important transaction or log into your account, try not to do so from a public place. Avoid responding to any emails you believe may be suspicious, and always check on the company website if you have any doubts about the legitimacy of an email.
from: https://reciprocaltech.com/blog/how-phishing-has-evolved-over-the-years/
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