What is Phishing?

[Sunite]

What is Phishing?


Due to the wide use of computers and internet, the dangers that come with their usage is also increasing. Today emails are very useful in many ways. But the same emails bring us many problems and make us lose money. My friend once received an email from his bank. He was curious why his bank would send an email to him and opened that email.

In that email it was mentioned that he was selected and won a car worth $20,000. Therefore in order to register the car in his name and deliver to him they wanted some of his personal details. A link was provided in the email to update his particulars. There was also a warning message which said the particulars have to be updated ONLY using the link provided in that email.

My friend was very happy. Who will not be if he had won a car. He clicked on the link. His bank's home page appeared on the screen. He checked whether it was the same page as his bank. Yes it was. It was the same page as his bank's page. He was even happier now. His Name, Birth date, Father's Name, Home Address, Account number, Password, Credit card number and many other details were asked in that page. He happily filled all the details. He was then shown a 'Thank You' page which said that the car's key and the registration papers will be sent to him in a week.

After two or three days he went to the bank to withdraw some money. But the bank clerk said that 'There was no balance' in his account. He argued that he did not withdraw any money and asked him to check again. The bank clerk said, you did not withdraw money but you bought a lot of things 'Online' from internet. Then he started thinking how was it possible. It took a few hours to figure out that the email that he had received earlier was a hoax and he had been cheated.

This is called 'Phishing' in internet. The email will look like it is from a particular company or organization. A link will be provided in the email and it will ask you for your particulars and to update your password and other personal details. If you click the link the page will look very similar to the company's original website but in reality it is not. Thus they will make you believe it is from a particular company and cheat you. This is called Phishing.

Tips to be safe from Phishing?


If any email asks for your bank's login name, password, bank account no, credit card no etc, do not believe it. No bank will ask for these details through email. You can call your bank and check with them.

If you receive SPAM emails from unknown persons or unknown companies just ignore them and delete them.

When you visit websites in internet, do not fill in forms and subscribe to insecure websites. You can see whether a site is secure from the LOCK icon displayed in the status bar of the browser or in the address bar the address starts with 'https'

Never click on links contained inside emails.

If you are a 'online banking' user then frequently check your bank balance and transactions. If there is any doubt just call your bank to verify.

Another thing to remember is 'nothing comes free' in this world. So if any email claims that you have won a lottery, or someone wants to transfer amount to your account etc, just ignore such SPAM emails.