Professional networking platform LinkedIn has ranked first in the list of brands most likely to be imitated in phishing attempts in the first quarter of 2022, a report said on Tuesday.
According to cybersecurity firm Check Point, the report highlighted the brands that hackers most often imitated in the first three months of this year, in order to lure people into giving up their personal data.
"These phishing attempts are attacks of opportunity, plain and simple. Criminal groups orchestrate these phishing attempts on a grand scale, with a view to getting as many people to part with their personal data as possible," Omer Dembinsky, Data Research Group Manager at Check Point Software, said in a statement.
"Some attacks will attempt to gain leverage over individuals or steal their information, such as those we are seeing with LinkedIn. Others will be attempts to deploy malware on company networks, such as the fake emails containing spoof carrier documents that we are seeing with the likes of Maersk. If there was ever any doubt that social media would become one of the most heavily targeted sectors by criminal groups, Q1 has laid those doubts to rest," Dembinsky added.
LinkedIn dominated the rankings for the first time ever, accounting for more than half (52 per cent) of all phishing attempts during the quarter. This represents a dramatic 44 per cent uplift from the previous quarter, where the professional networking site was in fifth position accounting for only 8 per cent of phishing attempts.
DHL is second to LinkedIn, accounting for 14 per cent of phishing attempts, followed by Google (7 per cent) and Microsoft (6 per cent). FedEx has moved from the seventh position to the fifth, now accounting for 6 per cent of all phishing attempts.
WhatsApp maintained its position in the top ten, accounting for almost one in 20 phishing-related attacks worldwide. Maersk and AliExpress have entered the top ten list for the first time.
--IANS
vc/bg
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU