Phishing emails are increasingly common, with fraudsters and online criminal activity only increasing year by year – in 2021/2022, for example, the Cyberthreat Defence Report stated that 80% of businesses experienced a successful cyber-attack, increasing by 10% from the previous year. Of these attacks, phishing reportedly made up a shocking 83%, so knowing how to avoid dangerous spam and dodgy attachments is a crucial factor in avoiding cyber-attacks on your business. So, what should you do?
Check attachment file name
Firstly, check any attachments for names that look unusual or inaccurate. If you’re even slightly unsure, then don’t open it! Spam or phishing emails have a higher proportion of spelling and grammar mistakes than most emails, so it’s an easy way to prevent yourself from being caught out.
Don’t give out your details
It may seem obvious, but don’t give out your details! If you get an official looking email though, it’s sometimes easy to trust what they tell you to do. However, always keep in mind that banks, insurers, businesses, or anyone else will not ask for your details. If you receive an email asking for your bank details or other personal information, immediately treat it with caution, as it’s likely to be a phishing email.
Check the details of the email and sender
Although some phishing emails can come up in your inbox with a name you may recognise – for example, “Andrew Perkins”, if you’re not sure about the contents of the email, make sure that you check the sender’s email address, which could be something entirely different, such as “ash89965@gmail.com” or something similar. Taking the time to verify the email is from who you think it is can save you a lot of time and panic, so make sure that you check.
Don’t follow instructions
Spam emails can be excellent at creating panic and stress, so try your best to take a step back and reassess what they you to do. If you are even faintly unsure, delete the email or move it to your junk folder. Cyber-criminals prey on the panic that they try to create in order to get money, personal, or financial details from you, so think carefully before following any instructions sent to you via email, even if they seem to come from a known source.
Don’t forward to anyone else
If you do receive a suspicious email, delete it or place it in your junk folder and don’t forward it to anyone else. Forwarding a potentially malicious email could expose more people within a business to the risks posed by the email, and could spread malware that might be attached to the email. If you want to ask for help or advice, send a separate email to an IT specialist, whether that’s in-house or from an external provider.
Don’t click on any links
Finally, don’t click on any links included in a potentially malicious email. Often, such links will prompt malicious software to download and put your data at risk. If you do, let a member of your IT team know immediately, but don’t forward the email to them when doing so.
Unfortunately, phishing is increasingly common, so the best approach you can take is to be aware of its risks and how to mitigate them. If you’d like to talk to a member of our team about how best to protect your business against cyber-crime, then you can contact us here. Otherwise, why not have a look at some more posts on our blog? You can find it here.
