7 essential tips to beat phishing scams

Phishing scams are among the most prevalent forms of cybercrime, especially in the UK. Although phishing is widespread, it is beatable. Apart from ensuring you install security software, the best way to combat scams is to learn what phishing looks like.

Phishing (pronounced “fishing”) is a kind of identity theft which is growing in popularity amongst hackers. By using fraudulent websites and false emails, perpetrators attempt to steal your personal data – most commonly passwords and credit card information.

Criminals gain this information by sending you links to sites that look like sites you trust, such as your online banking provider or social networks, and are able to steal your data as you enter it. Some of the sites spoofed most regularly include PayPal, eBay, Yahoo! and MSN, as well as financial institutions – so don’t think that an email is guaranteed to be safe when it’s not from a bank.

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