"Phishing" and Fraudulent Emails

You have probably received one. The email can be from a distant prince seeking to protect his fortunes from a bank needing you to update your account.

Most will ask for personal information such as your account number and a password for either your bank or possibly PayPal.

Many will have a warning that your services (and money) are in danger. Your action is immediately required. By clicking on the link you will be taken to a page where you can log in to your account and avert the disaster described in the email.

There, of course, is no disaster. This is a Phishing scam.

These scams are increasingly prevalent in today's online society. Emails that look like they originate from a respected institution are filling the inboxes of millions of people worldwide. According to Wikipedia between May 2004 and May 2005, approximately 1.2 million computer users in the United States suffered losses caused by phishing, totaling approximately US$929 million.

There are a few different types of victims in these scenarios. The most obvious is the person who receives the email, responds, and is robbed of the contents of their bank account.

Another victim, though, is the website that was hacked to complete the charade. Phishers do not use their own websites. Instead, much like parasites, they attach themselves to preexisting legitimate websites. Once they have hacked into the website they upload their insidious files into folders sometimes three or four layers below the top level files.

No one is immune to these attacks. Many government agencies, including Congress, have taken up the issue and we hope that someday soon there will be a solution.

Phishing Resources:

Wikipedia's Phishing resource


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