Becoming More Difficult to Detect Phishing Email Attack, says Security Experts

Enterprise-security-today.com published news on 30th July, 2013, quoting security experts saying, "Fake emails used by hackers in 'phishing attacks' to access company and government data are getting harder to distinguish from the real ones."

Security specialists said that the sophisticated phishing attacks targeting lawyers, oil company executives and managers of defense contractors to acquire proprietary credentials and passwords which will give them access to corporation and government databases.

Chicago Tribune recently reported a study conducted by Verizon Communications Incorporation, one of the largest wireless relevant products/services carriers saying that almost every incident of online espionage in 2012 involved some sort of phishing attack.

Fake emails often include links which on being clicked, undetectable malware is downloaded infecting personal computers and turning them into remotely controlled robots for hackers.

Chandra McMahon, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) for Military Technology jumbo Lockheed Martin Corporation saying that phishing attacks targeted at its employee's emails continuously try to imitate emails and websites of organizations, which its workers visit on regular basis," as accords to news published by Phys.org on 30th July, 2013.

McMahon said that they are hijacked by rivals as they are the ideal spot to plant malware as lot of employees of the trade will go there.

According to a statement published by phys.org on 30th July, 2013, Peter Toren, Former Justice Department Computer Crimes Prosecutor said that he has not come across any company sacking someone for launching malware into the company's network by clicking a link. However, he feels that some company ultimately might have to come up with an example of some employee doing this.

Toren said that company would not take legal action against an employee since they do not enough deep pockets to reimburse a claim but certainly they can terminate the unfaithful employees on the grounds of failing to follow instruction or training.

Therefore, best advice to all online users is: If you are not 100% sure about a link, don't click it, ignore it. The survey suggests that it's not worth taking risks looking at the potential losses to yourself or your company.

» SPAMfighter News - 8/8/2013