February 21, 2006
Veronique De Freitas
Online phishing scams - fake emails and counterfeit websites aimed at stealing your financial or personal details - are continuing to reel in victims.
According to Sophos, 58 per cent of computer users receive at least one phishing email everyday, while 22 per cent receive more than five a day.
Recent figures from the Anti-Phishing Group also show that phishing attacks are continuing to soar in number, with 15,244 phishing emails in December 2005, up from 8,829 in 2004. Both companies warn that attacks are becoming more elaborate and harder to spot.
Carole Theriault, senior security consultant at Sophos, said: "The reason phishing emails are now so prevalent is due to their success rate - every day new users fall victim to these underhand and illegal tactics."
"If you receive more than five phishes per day, you're either alert to the dangers or you're likely to have been robbed blind. With crooks employing more and more devious methods to dupe users, the best advice is to always be wary of unsolicited emails, and at all costs avoid parting with confidential information."
One recent phishing attack posed as notification of a refund from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The 'tax refund phish' claimed to be the result of a security configuration error on the real IRS website, with phishers redirecting visitors to a bogus address.
Topic: Surfers warned as phishing attacks soar (Read 761 times)