Fight the Phish
Fight The Phish
The second week of Cybersecurity Awareness Month is all about educating yourself about how to “Fight the Phish.” It’s important to understand the signs of phishing and know what to do when you suspect you are being Phished. Phishing is a type of online scam where criminals use social engineering by sending out fraudulent email, text messages or even phone calls that appear to come from a legitimate source with the sole purpose of acquiring your personal or organizational information. With this information the bad actors gain access to different accounts and can exploit your more sensitive personal information. That’s why it’s always important to stay vigilant and Fight the Phish. If you want to learn more about Phishing, please go to https://phishtalk.kent.edu
How can phishing affect you?
- Loss of personal information and identity theft
- Can lead to ransomware and malware infections
- Possibility of financial loss and reputation damage
Beware of the warning signs of a phishing attack and report it to phish@kent.edu.
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Attachments and links are one of the most dangerous content in a message, especially if you were not expecting it. Only open attachments/links that you are 100% sure are safe.
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Extensions: File extensions to be hazardous of are .EXE,.BAT, .HTML, .REG, .VBS, .ZIP, MSI
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Does the file attachment type make sense for what the message indicates? Example: voicemail (mp3 or wav) but a .HTML is attached instead.
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If you were not expecting an email with an attachment, or it is not the normal protocol for that sender, verify it directly with the sender before opening.
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Does the attachment or link prompt you to login and provide credentials? If so, DON’T OPEN IT, DON’T CLICK ON IT and report the email to Phish@kent.edu.
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Look for misspelled words or grammatical errors. An email with a hyperlink that is a misspelling of a known website. For example: "www.bankofarnerica.com" - the "m" is really two characters "r" and "n".
How can you protect yourself from phishing?
There are many ways you can help protect yourself from phishing.
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Do not open attachments or link in emails and messages if not verified.
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Hover over links, this is important, check the link address to make sure the address is legit.
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Educate yourself on how phishing works, and how to spot phish- https://phishtalk.kent.edu
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Setup Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA).
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Forward suspicious emails to phish@kent.edu
Phishing is a very easy way for attackers to gain access to private information, but it’s also a very lethal method that can lead to a whole organizations data breach. To learn more about phishing tips, visit https://phishtalk.kent.edu
Passwords