Spear phishing email attacks remain a top problem for businesses, according to the 2019 钓鱼现状报告 published by Proofpoint, a cybersecurity vendor. Sixty-four percent of information security professionals Proofpoint surveyed said their organizations had experienced a spear phishing attack last year. Spear phishing emails are those sent to specific individuals to gain sensitive information and often target small to midsized businesses.
Some companies want to educate employees about these scams, so they participate in educational programs that include sending simulated phishing emails to their employees and tracking open and clickthrough rates. Based on data from its customers sending simulated spear phishing emails, Proofpoint found four types of messages that recipients are vulnerable to.
- 公司的电子邮件, which are notices related to mailbox notifications, 福利登记, 发票, or other confidential human resources information.
- 消费电子邮件, which mimic familiar emails about store discounts, 社交媒体通知, 会员更新, 诸如此类.
- 商业电子邮件 which are business emails related to work, such as tracking confirmations, 电汇请求, 付款确认.
- 云的邮件, which encourage the recipient to download or edit a document in cloud storage.
The report points out that email spear phishing typically targets people and isn’t about installing malware or gaining access to a computer network. That’s why you should become familiar with common email phishing practices and warn your clients about their heightened potential to receive suspicious emails related to their real estate transactions.