How to Detect Phishing Emails: A Step-by-Step Guide

Understanding Phishing Emails

Phishing emails are fake messages designed to trick the recipients. These often mimic trusted sources like banks, online service providers, or social media platforms. They intend to get you to click malicious links or download damaging software to steal confidential information from you. It includes passwords, financial details, or other sensitive information.

The following are the common types of phishing emails:

• Spear Phishing: Spear phishing emails target specific individuals or organisations. The attacker conducts a recce of the potential victims on various platforms and customises the email to make it appear more persuasive.
• Clone Phishing: In this type of attack, the cyber hoods use a real and legitimate email as bait. They tweak it a bit, replace the original links with malicious ones, and shoot it to the victim's inbox. As these look pretty familiar to the real emails, they are easy to fall for.
• Whaling: When frauds target high-profile people like CEOs and executives, often referred to as "big fish," the attack is known as whaling.
• Social Media Phishing: As the name suggests, these phishing scams happen on social media. In these scams, users are made to click fishy links that steal personal information.

Step-by-Step Guide to Detect Phishing Emails

Let's take you through the best 10 ways to spot phishing emails:

1. Examine the Sender's Email Address: Always check the sender's email. Does it look suspicious? Is it different from the actual email address? For example - if the correct email address is karankumar@abccompany.com and you receive an email from karankumar@abcccompany.com, it could be a phishing attack.
2. Check for Generic Greetings: Does the email read "Dear Customer" or something generic? Legitimate organisations will mostly use your name while greeting you for a personalised approach.
3. Look for Urgent or Threatening Language: Cyber attackers often create a sense of panic and urgency to trick you into acting without looking into the ifs and buts. So, if you find something like ACT NOW, ACTION REQUIRED, or YOUR ACCOUNT WILL BE BLOCKED, CONGRATULATIONS, do not panic. It could be a phishing email
4. Inspect the Email Content for Errors: Typos, grammatical errors, and poor punctuation are common red flags. Here is an example for you -"Dear customer, we are glad to inform you, that, you profile is selected. We will send you details shortly."
5. Hover Over Links Without Clicking: Hover your mouse cursor over links. Do not click them. This will reveal the actual URL, which is likely to be different from what is displayed and may look doubtful.
6. Analyse Attachments Carefully: Be particularly careful with attachments, especially when sent from unknown senders. They could contain malware that may corrupt your entire system.
7. Check for Inconsistent Branding: Does the company logo look slightly off? Are the colours, designs, or fonts different from what they are supposed to be? Inconsistencies in branding may indicate a phoney email.
8. Verify Unusual Requests: Beware of emails asking for personal information, passwords, or financial details. Legitimate organisations will never ask for such information in emails.
9. Look at the Email Header for Technical Details: The email header can reveal the origin and path of the email. This may also help pinpoint suspicious emails.
10. Trust Your Instincts: If something does not feel right about the email, count your gut feeling.

Tools to Help Detect Phishing Emails

Here are some essential tools to help you detect and avoid these malicious emails:

• Anti-Phishing Software: These eagle-eyed programs look into each of your emails and attachments (if any) and sniff off the red flags, such as fishy links, unusual sender addresses, and emails asking for personal information. Then, these mark the potentially dangerous emails while alerting you to go ahead with caution.
• Email Security Gateways: These impenetrable gateways act as a first line of defence. These gateways meticulously inspect every incoming email before it even tries to land in your inbox. These digital gatekeepers use various tools and techniques, such as spam filtering, malware detection, and link analysis, to block malicious emails.
• Browser Warnings: Modern web browsers are equipped with built-in security features that can detect phishing websites lurking around the corner. So, if you happen to click on a suspicious link, your browser comes into action and throws up a red flag if the site you are about to open is potentially fraudulent.

What to Do If You Suspect a Phishing Email?

Think you've received a phishing email? Here's what you should do next:

• First of all, resist the urge to click anything –be it a link or downloadable attachments. Think of it like handling a suspicious package outside the airport – you would not open it just like that, right? By avoiding these, you reduce the risk of invasion to a great extent.
• Next, inform your IT or cybersecurity team immediately. They are well-versed to handle such scenarios. The experts will analyse the email to find out if it is potentially dangerous and if it is part of a larger attack.
• Moreover, do not rely on email for contact information. Use the company's official website or phone number to verify the email's legitimacy.
• Finally, once you have reported it, delete that email permanently.

Real-Life Examples of Phishing Attacks

Here are some real-life examples of phishing attacks, highlighting their impact and the lessons learned:

How to Protect Yourself from Phishing Emails?

Follow these tips to protect yourself and your team from cyber attacks:

• Educate Yourself and Your Team: Make sure to provide regular training to your team. The training sessions should cover the types of phishing attacks, how to identify phishing emails, and what to do if you suspect a phishing try.
• Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): 2FA provides an extra layer of security to your accounts. So, even if a cyber attacker manages to steal your password, they will still need a second element (for example - a pattern lock or a fingerprint scan) to enter the account.
• Regularly Update Software: Software updates often include patches for security exposures that phishers can exploit. So, always keep your software programs updated. It helps protect you from these attacks.
• Use Strong and Unique Passwords: Keep your passwords long and complicated. Make sure that they have a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Use a different password for each of your accounts.

The Role of Cyber Insurance in Phishing Protection

Phishing attacks are a nightmare for any business. While you cannot always prevent them from happening, you can always protect yourself from the financial outcomes with a comprehensive cyber insurance plan.

It is like your Suraksha Kawach (safety armour) from digital predators. It reimburses stolen funds and lost income while covering legal costs, data recovery, and system repairs.

Conclusion

Phishing attacks are prevalent and a reason for constant threat. However, being vigilant is your best armour. So, now that you are aware of the know-how to spot the bait and stay safe, be proactive and take the steps outlined in this guide.

Enhance the level of protection even further with a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy and an exhaustive cyber insurance policy from Policybazaar for Business and fight cyber predators like a pro.