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SpamTitan warns of iPhone 5 spams and phishing attacks | anti phishing

Posted by Geraldine Hunt on Tue, Sep 18th, 2012

As usual with an iPhone launch there has been massive and inexplicable global interest with reports of more than 2 million iPhone 5s being sold in less than 24 hours. The simple fact is Apple fans have an insatiable yearning for all things Apple. With millions of people waiting on delivery of their new phone/s Apple are reported to be expecting several weeks delay on delivery. For those that are salivating at the prospect of the new shiny iPhone you could be just the person cybercriminals are looking for.

The anticipation around the iPhone 5 is being used by scammers

Apple has cultivated a curtain of mystery that millions are dying to peek behind, every launch, every new release is highly anticipated. Scammers know this and, on the eve of the most anticipated device release of the year, scammers are prepared to take advantage of the enormous levels of anticipation around the new "iPhone 5."

With millions of people waiting for delivery notifications the time is perfect for scammers and phishers to use this anticipation to launch iPhone related email phishing campaigns. The iPhone 5 has already been targeted by scammers;

  • Fake emails relating to free iPhone 5 offers,
  • Bogus websites, fake delivery notifications,
  • Emails announcing fake iPhone 5 competition results 

If your company is using a suitable spam filter these scam emails will be blocked before even reaching your network.

You might not fall for these scams but can you say the same for your fellow employees?

If you work in IT or have an interest in computer security you might not fall too easily for these scams but can you say the same for your fellow employees? In the rush to get access to this latest and greatest iPhone many people throw common sense out the window and click on unknown links or inadvertently hand over personal data to cybercriminals.

Ensure your company security solutions are up to date and that employees are aware of the basic common sense rules around email security  - sometimes it’s the simplest mistakes that can cost a company dearly. The old adage once again applies - if it’s too good to be true, it probably is !.

To prevent these spam attacks, organisations need to remain vigilant and follow proven guidelines such as not clicking on links or attachments in unsolicited emails.

To avoid becoming a victim of a phishing attack follow some few simple rules:

  • Don't trust any unsolicited email, ever !.
  • Never “unsubscribe” from a service you haven’t subscribed for in the first place. You are literally handing your email address to spammers to use for future and possibly more targeted attacks.
  • If you interested in an offer contacting the company  behind the message by phone and verify that  the message  is genuine.
  • Keep your company security solutions valid and up to date so that you can secure  your organisations network.
  • Employees and other insiders actions are responsible for the majority of security breaches, a culture of security awareness is an important factor in preventing these security failures.

Spam will continue to exist as long as it is profitable and with growing numbers of people on the internet spammers have a growing  market of millions of people for their spam. It’s purely a numbers game, the greater the market for the spammers the greater chance of a response and therefore the greater the reward.

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