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 Home > PC Clean Up > Prevent Phishing Prevent Online Scams (Phishing)
Beware - Scam Website!
A familiar but still effective phishing technique
lends a false sense of credibility to many phishing attacks: the use of "address
bar spoofing" to hide the real phishing URL. The only way to be certain is
by checking the Properties of the phishing page (by right-clicking anywhere on
the phishing page and then clicking Properties) shows that the real URL is
different from that displayed in the URL address bar. 1. Don't click on email attachments: Most viruses and worms arrive via email attachments. Many of them are spring-loaded to execute as soon as you click on them. Common dangerous file extensions include - .bat, .com, .exe, .pif, .scr, and .vbs. Your best bet is to avoid email attachments unless you know exactly what the file is. 2. Be suspicious of email return addresses: Since phishing attacks attempt to trick you into believing that the email is coming from a trusted source, be very suspicious of an email's return address. Don't just assume that because the email return address in the message header says a certain company that it is in fact from that company. The fact of the matter is that most financial institutions do NOT email their clients to ask for account number confirmation or social security numbers or any other personal information. 3. Be suspicious of the email message: Fake phishing emails will attempt to get you to type in your account information, financial information, or personal data into an online form so that the phisher can capture your information and then use it against you. The message may even contain links to a counterfeit version of the company's Web site, complete with genuine-looking graphics and corporate logos. 4. Be suspicious of the link: Phishing emails will include a link that appears to lead you to a financial website or other website you may do business with. Although the link looks genuine, it is easy to disguise a link and have it deliver you to a counterfeit website that is masuerading as your bank's website. Be suspicious of any email asking you to re-confirm your personal or sensitive information online - even if the website looks genuine. Tip - Banks and ISPs don't lose your information and then send e-mail requests for you to reenter it online. Another tip-off is that the link text and the real underlying URL don't match. Always examine log-in Web pages and their URLs closely. 5. Don't download or install anything: Some phishing attacks create a pop-up warning that prompts you to download a "browser plug-in." Do not download this! Doing so can result in a flurry of pop-ups, undesirable toolbars, a home-page hijacking, or worse. 6. Internet Explorer 7.0 anti-phishing tools: IE 7.0 (or greater) includes anti-phishing tools. This tool is an online filter (must be activated by the user) that verifies commonly phished websites including Paypal, Ebay, etc. Internet Explorer will verify each of these websites and check them against possible phishing sites. You must have IE 7's automatic anti-phishing filter and automatic certificate revocation enabled, for this feature to work. To determine if a website is a reported phishing website or not, the Phishing Filter will check the address of the website you are trying to visit on a Microsoft server to see if it’s a reported phishing site. Article: Think Before You Click to Avoid Viruses and Scams - Read PC World article If you have a wireless internet connection in your home, you should check out our section on how to secure your wireless network for detailed instructions and advice on data encryption and wireless router security. Clean Up Steps:
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