Can you recognise a phishing attack ?

Earlier this week Data News reported on a new enquiry published by Lloyds bank. The most interesting result was that one out of three SMB employees is unable to recognise a phishing attack and act accordingly. We at AXS GUARD want to add two footnotes: how is that possible? And is it, with today’s available technology, still necessary to be able to recognize phishing?

Phishing messages asking for your bank information or a malicious program that wants to install itself on your computer… However unfortunate, they’re omnipresent today. You receive an email from someone who poses as your boss (or a colleague) and often the message is ‘can you please do this’ or ‘can you take care of that?’ These practices are so perfected that it has become very difficult to recognise a fake from a real email, simply on the basis of what used to be giveaways such as linguistic mistakes.

While it’s understandable to have doubts when you receive such an email, it shouldn’t be the conundrum that it is. We all know the dangers there are to be found on the internet, and we know how they evolve, and yet we still do not see enough training and education regarding the subject. Furthermore, the few trainings that exist are often outdated because trainers are not always (fully) aware of new developments in the field.

Regarding our second question, ‘is it still necessary to know what a phishing attack looks like, even though we possess today’s technology?’, our answer is a firm YES. Even if that goes against the products that we make and sell. Our reasoning is simple: AXS GUARD stops dangerous emails,
(85% of all emails are harmful)  but you can never be prepared enough. 

Because, as we already said: hackers and malware evolve constantly, so quickly that’s it’s hard to keep up with them. That is why we always need a minimum of awareness and training on these topics. Explain to your co-workers what the dangers are, what the consequences could be and how they can avoid them. Help them recognise phishing attacks before it’s too late.
 

There exists no one-size-fits-all solution, but ith the right combination of different approaches, you always stand a chance. Start with using the right defense mechanism, such as an AXS GUARD, and complement it with thorough training.
 

For further questions and comments, we are at your disposal.