Phishing has been a big problem for a long time in the cyber world. It’s a sneaky way for bad guys to trick people into giving away important information. In 2023, just like before, phishing attacks were still causing trouble.
A recent report from Codefense, a company that helps keep emails safe, looked at the most common types of phishing emails last year. They looked at things like what the emails said and if they had any attachments.
Codefense says it’s important to figure out what kind of phishing email it is because then we can respond better and know what to watch out for. They split the phishing emails into three groups based on how many there were: lots, some, and not many.
The most common type, making up more than half, were about finance. These emails pretended to be about money stuff like invoices and payments. Next up, at 35%, were emails pretending to be about important notifications like passwords or appointments. Then, at 7%, were ones pretending to be about shipping stuff. Finally, at 3%, were emails trying to get people to reply by asking fake questions or using someone else’s email account.
What’s interesting is that these phishing emails were at their highest in the second quarter of 2023, especially in May. Codefense thinks this might be because of something called QakBot campaigns, which used those fake response emails a lot.
The next group, with a decent amount but not as many as the first, included scams pretending to be documents or voicemails, at 38% and 25%. Then, at 24%, were ones pretending to be about travel help. Finally, there were scams about faxes or legal stuff, but those were much less common.
The last group, with the fewest phishing emails, included ones about things like benefits or taxes, which were at 37% and 32%. Then, at 21%, were ones pretending to be job applications. Finally, at 10%, were ones pretending to be about buying or selling properties.
It looks like phishing emails are getting smarter and still causing a lot of trouble for businesses. They can trick people into giving away important information, which is bad news. And with new technology like AI, it might be even easier for bad guys to trick people.
So, it’s important to be careful and not fall for these sneaky tricks. Always double-check emails that seem suspicious, and never give away important info unless you’re sure it’s safe.
