How to spot and avoid phishing scams
2023年5月5日 • 5分钟阅读
How Phishing Scams Put Your 个人 Data at Risk
收到欺诈性邮件或短信?
收到欺诈性邮件或短信?
If you’ve received an email or text from WSECU and believe it is fraudulent, you can report it here: phishing@aifengcai.com. Please be sure to attach the email or a screenshot of the text for review.
If you responded to the email or text or clicked on any links, please call our Contact Center at 800.562.0999. We’re available 7:00 am-7:00 pm Monday-Friday and 9:00 am-2:00 pm Saturday.
How phishing scams put your personal data at risk
Phishing scams occur online when data thieves coerce unsuspecting internet users into giving them personal or financial information like passwords, bank account numbers and Social Security numbers. From there, the scammers gain access to their target’s email, financial or other online accounts.
In 2022, phishing and related scams accounted for more than 损失5200万美元, according to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. According to the same source, Washington state was tenth among states with the 最多 网络犯罪受害者.
While these statistics may seem alarming, there are some basic steps you can take to protect yourself from cybercriminals 以及网络钓鱼诈骗.
什么时候该怀疑
Many scams that come in the form of email and 短信 一开始看起来是合法的吗. Phishing emails often include brand logos or official seals to make them seem genuine. 例如, 因为有些邮件, 甚至是打电话, have effectively mimicked government agencies, 许多人都成了……的受害者 冒充国税局的骗子尤其是在交税的时候.
No matter how legitimate or authentic messages may seem, it’s okay to treat any correspondence with a healthy dose of suspicion.
Keep a sharp lookout for the following:
- Messages with spelling errors and unprofessional language
- A sense of urgency and a request to act quickly
- Unsolicited reports indicating suspicious activity on an account
- Notices about payment processing issues
- Invoices or receipts for items you did not purchase
- Requests to verify your personal information
- Messages asking you to click on a link to confirm data or sign in to an account
- 提供免费的商品或服务
Even if everything looks okay but something doesn’t feel quite right, trust your instincts and take the following steps to avoid being scammed.
良好的自我保护习惯
The key to safeguarding your data and accounts from phishing scams is reading email and 短信 carefully and following some basic best practices.
最佳实践
- 核实发件人的身份. Sometimes a simple online search will let you know if the message is a scam.
- Visit the Washington state attorney general’s website to see if there are any relevant 消费者诈骗警报 如果你仍然不确定.
- Avoid clicking on links or offering any information without first confirming the legitimacy of a message.
- 使用多因素身份验证 to add an extra layer of digital security to your online accounts — especially those storing any of your personal information.
- Use strong passwords and update them regularly.
- 打开垃圾邮件拦截器.
- Keep your internet security software up to date on both your phone and computer.
- Turn on automatic updates for your operating systems, internet browsers and any other system software.
- Immediately change passwords to any accounts that may have been compromised.
举报网络钓鱼诈骗
It’s important to 报告网络钓鱼诈骗 to help protect other consumers from becoming victims. Your report could lead to an arrest or, at the very least, put the scammers out of business.
你可以 报告网络钓鱼诈骗 to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on their website. 你也可以 提出消费者投诉 with the Washington attorney general’s office and your local law enforcement. The more people you can warn about a phishing scam, the less likely they will be to fall victim to it.
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