Spoofing definition
The word “Spoofing” means an act in which cybercriminals try to deceive a user through a website, phone or email by pretending to be a trusted person or organization and then seeking private information. Spoofing is typically used to obtain personal information such as credit card numbers or other sensitive information, transfer malicious software to a user’s system, or used as a basis for larger and more serious cyber attacks. Spoofing are calculated attacks in which cybercriminals use social engineering strategies that exploit human nature and weaknesses such as fear and ignorance.
How does spoofing work?
The main goal of a fraudster is to make the target user believe that they are a trusted person or organization. In some cases, online fraudsters achieve this by changing one symbol (letter or number) in the name of a well-known company. A user who does not read the name of the page or e-mail address well and does not pay attention to every letter in the name can very easily believe and become a victim of cyber attacks.
There are many examples of such scams on the Internet and they are most often in a similar form as this: The user receives an email from the email address “Mark.Collins @ paypalll.com” informing the user that the last completed money transaction was not successfully completed due to a new update of the transaction system, and that it is necessary to re-enter credit card information in the hyperlink window. in the mail. The user accesses the site and enters the requested information which is stolen and used for other illegal hacking actions.
Types of spoofing
- Via e-mail – the most common forms of spoofing attacks, as an example above, are email spoofing attacks. They involve falsely representing fraudsters by email on behalf of verified organizations or user contacts in order to obtain sensitive information about theft;
- Via phone call – indicates an attempt to obtain the necessary information by telephone calls. For example, when cybercriminals present themselves as representatives of a user’s bank seeking certain information regarding the user’s bank accounts. If the user is naive to give information, fraudsters can very easily steal money from the account;
- Via website – this type of spoofing involves changing one symbol in a link to a known page, and then lazing the entire page in the hope that the user will enter their data such as a password into the fraudster’s database for further illegal use.
How to protect against spoofing attacks
As with any other Internet threat, many IT professionals have shared some tips and guidelines on how to reduce the risk of these attacks and protect your data.
How to protect yourself from email spoofing
Cyber attacks via email are common and cannot be completely removed because anyone can send you an email with an infected website. To protect yourself you need to be careful when opening received emails and take some precautions to avoid suspicious emails, like: turning on the spam filter, have a long, complex password and use emails which you do not need in the future for registration on various sites.
How to protect yourself from website spoofing
To avoid website spoofing you need to pay attention to a few things. Make sure that the link on the page is marked as a secure page (the link must start with https), read the entire link of the website carefully, if it is not spelled correctly, do not access the page.
How to protect yourself from phone spoofing
Phone spoofing is the most primitive way of cyber fraud and if you are a careful and rational person, it is very difficult for such an attack to be successful. You can further insure yourself by setting a filter for suspicious calls that you can request from your telephone provider. If the provider does not offer such a service, we recommend that you do not answer calls from unknown phone numbers.
To wrap-up
The trend of cyber fraud and crime is constantly growing and it has never been more important than today to follow the advice and instructions of experts. However, the best protection against online scams is careful browsing and rational judgment that will allow you to use the Internet safely.
