Phishing schemes have definitely been the most widespread and dangerous cyber threat over the last several years. Cybercrooks, using social engineering skills, would deceive individuals and businesses into revealing sensitive details like passwords, financial information, or personal data.
According to the Internet Crime Report of the FBI, phishing attacks generated over 300,000 complaints in the year 2023, causing losses in excess of $2.5 billion. These scams exploit human psychology, urgency, and compassion to trick their victims into handing over confidential information.

What is a phishing scheme?

A phishing scheme is any fraudulent activity with the aim of obtaining sensitive information regarding a target person. It contains the impersonation of trusted organizations, persons, or services. Phishing may be performed via email, text messages (SMS), phone calls, and fake websites.

How Phishing Works
Bait- The victim receives an email, message, or call from what appears to be a legitimate source.
Hook- It plants a sense of urgency through a request or provides a link or an attachment that may be harmful.
Capture- When the user clicks the link or downloads the attachment, or on provides data, the user becomes victimized and the attacker gets access to the sensitive information.
Exploitation- Such stolen data will be used for financial fraud, identity theft, corporate spy, or ransomware attacks.

Types of Phishing Attacks

1. Clone Phishing
📧 Attackers duplicate a legitimate email and replace attachments or links with malicious versions.
Example: A fake Google Drive invitation asks you to view a shared document, leading to a phishing site.

2. Email Phishing (Most Common)
📩 Attackers send fraudulent emails impersonating banks, social media platforms, or online services to steal credentials.
Example: An email from “support@paypal-secure.com” claims your account is suspended and asks you to verify your identity by clicking a link.

3. Spear Phishing (Targeted Attacks)
Highly targeted phishing emails sent to specific individuals or organizations using personal details to appear legitimate.
Example: An email pretending to be from a CEO or HR manager requests an employee to share company login details.

4. Smishing (SMS Phishing)
Attackers use fraudulent text messages urging recipients to click a link or call a fake support number.
Example: A message from “Your Bank” warns about an unauthorized transaction and asks you to call a number to confirm your details.

5. Vishing (Voice Phishing)
📞 Attackers use phone calls to impersonate banks, government agencies, or IT support.
Example: A scammer claims to be from Microsoft Support, saying your computer is infected and asks for remote access.
Example: Capital One, a bank in Virginia, suffered devastating financial and legal repercussions as a result of the cloud data breach in 2019 when hackers managed to access over 100 million customer records.

6. Whaling (Targeting Executives & CEOs)
🐋 Attackers impersonate senior executives to manipulate employees into wire transfers or revealing sensitive data.
Example: A borrowing e-mail from the CFO of the company instructs the finance team to release $500,000 to a vendor account.

7. Angler Phishing (Attacks via Social Media)
📢 Cybercriminals create fake social media accounts and pose as legitimate customer representatives to defraud customers with the information.
Example: A fake bank Twitter account responds to a customer complaint directing the customer to another website that is fraudulent.

Examples of Actual Phishing Attack Twitter Bitcoin Scam (High-Profile Takeover)
Attack: Attackers implemented phishing procedures targeting employees of Twitter, gaining access to high-profile accounts including Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and Apple.
Outcome: They swindled victims into sending $120,000 worth of Bitcoin to phony donation links..

Google And Facebook Scam ($100 Million Lost)
Attack: A hacker impersonating a legitimate vendor sent fraud invoices to Google and Facebook. Outcome: Both companies paid, unknowingly, over $100 million before they realized it was fraud.

Target Data Breach (40 Million Cards Stolen)
Attack: A phishing email was used to compromise a third-party vendor that allowed the stealing of 40 million credit card details.