Phishing

What is phishing?

Ways of phishing attack and how to cope with it

What can I do to prevent phishing?

How can I recognize an original mail from edpnet? 

Phishing e-mail examples

 

What is phishing?

Phishing is the illegal attempt to acquire the user’s personal information such as usernames, passwords, security codes, and credit card details by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication. The goal of phishing is usually to indirectly and illegally get money. 

 

Ways of phishing attack and how to cope with it

 

How may I face phishing?	What may phishing look like?	What should I do?
by e-mail	contains the logo of a trustworthy source (e.g., edpnet) contains the name of a trustworthy source (e.g. edpnet) in the e-mail address contains a threat, a warning or some urgent request a spontaneous request to check/send your logins by replying to this e-mail a spontaneous request to fill in your personal or financial information by clicking on some given link (usually redirecting to a fake website) contains an attachment of something you haven’t requested or ordered comes from an unrecognized sender the text is written in a language you do not speak or with grammar and language mistakes	never communicate your logins or financial information via e-mail or any other web contact form do not reply to the e-mail do not click on a link included in the e-mail do not open any attachment included in the e-mail delete the e-mail immediately report about the phishing attack to abuse[at]edpnet.com
by phone	a spontaneous call coming from a number which looks like some trustworthy organization number when you answer, you hear an automatic voice message giving some instructions a spontaneous request to communicate your personal or financial information (often threatening or urgent) a spontaneous call which let your phone ring only once and then hang up tempting you to call back on the displayed number	never communicate your logins, financial credentials or other personal information by phone be careful calling back on a suspicious number or a number you do not recognize: if it's urgent, people will try to reach you later
pop-up on a website	a request to fill in your personal or financial information in a pop-up window a pop-up redirecting to another website/fake website	never enter your logins, financial credentials or other personal information in a pop-up screen never use a link from a pop-up check if you enter your logins or financial credentials on a secure website (usually, it is https:// where “s” stands for “secure”)
using free Wi-Fi in a public place	a free wireless network that looks similar to a legitimate public network that may be found in public places such as airports, hotels or coffee shops	use only secure wireless networks which require a Wi-Fi key or are officially offered and reported by their owner

 

What can I do to prevent phishing?

Protect your computer with a firewall, spam-filters, anti-virus and anti-spyware software and update it regularly to ensure you are getting the most recent version. See also What can I do against internet abuse? 

 

How can I recognize an original mail from edpnet?

• edpnet never asks to confirm your passwords or other sensitive data online, in a form or in an email;
• the internal edpnet addresses have the extension edpnet.com or edpnet.net (for example when you receive an email via our ticketing system). For more general edpnet messages we do use info@edpnet.be. But we do not use any other unknown exotic extension which is not related to edpnet;
• The mentioned sender in the from field is always the 'edpnet helpdesk', the 'edpnet team' or the 'edpnet B2B team'.

 

Phishing e-mail examples

1. Request to confirm the e-mail address (using a link to a fake webpage)

WEBMAIL

Dear Example,

For your safety, we have temporarily disabled some features of your email: exomple@example.be. Please click here to verify your email and regain full access to our services. 

If the link above did not appear, please click on the link 
below to confirm your email address: <link + e-mail>. 

*This update is mandatory to avoid you been shut out of your account.

Sincerely,
Webmail Security Team

©2015 Webmail, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

2. Request to communicate the personal information

*Chers (es) clients (es) de EDPNET,*

Le service technique chargé de la maintenance des comptes de messagerie a détecté des accès illégaux à votre messagerie à travers différentes adresses IP. Au risque que votre compte ne soit suspendu dans les prochains jours, notre service de maintenance vous demande de confirmer vos accès de connexion. Au cas où les informations ne seront pas fournies, votre accès à la messagerie serait suspendu définitivement. Pour des raisons de sécurité, veuillez fournir l’intégralité des informations demandées.

Complétez les informations suivantes pour la confirmation à votre accès

* Nom d'utilisateur:........................................
* Mot de passe:.............................................. 
* Adresse e-mail :.......................................... 
* Mot de passe :.............................................
* E-mail secondaire :....................................... 
* Mot de passe :.............................................. 
* Date de naissance:....................................... 
* Pays ou territoire:.........................................
* Profession:......................................................
* Tel:..................................................................

 

Dès la réception de ces informations, votre messagerie serait suivie contre les accès illégaux. Merci de votre collaboration. 

Webmail EDPNET*

*Cordialement,*

*L’équipe EDPNET*

3. Warning about the security of the account containing a link to fill in the logins

Attention:

An Attempt has been made to Your Account from a new computer. For the security of your account, we are poised to open a query or update your account. Kindly Click, <link> for secure security and instant online account upgrade.

©edpnet.be Webmail IT Help Desk.

 

4. Urgent request to pay your outstanding bill

 

Gerechtelijk Arrondissement

PRO JUSTITIA

 

Aanvankelijk Proces-Verbaal
TU.95.A7.481249/2015

 

Dienst Verkeer

 

Tel.:014/40.40.60

Fax: 014/40.40.99

Datum van het feit

Datum: 17/10/2014

 

Geachte bestuurder,

 

U heeft nog een bedrag van €103.50 bij ons openstaan wegens het overtreden van een verkeersvoorschrift.

Wij hebben u hierover al meerdere malen een brief gestuurd. Tot op heden hebben wij geen enkele reactie van u ontvangen.

U kunt direct online betalen met Bancontact via 3V Payment Group.

Klik hier <link> op online betalen om het openstaande bedrag te voldoen, let op dat u de juiste waarde selecteert.

Kies hiertoe uw eigen bank.

Zodra u het openstaande bedrag heeft betaald via 3V Payment Group, ontvangt u een unieke 19-cijferige code.

Om de betaling succesvol te verwerken, dient u de 19-cijferige code via de link hieronder.

Vul hier uw 19-cijferige code in om de betaling succesvol te verwerken. <link>

Let op: Indien we het volledige bedrag niet voor vrijdag 9 Januari van u ontvangen,

zal het bedrag worden verhoogd met buitengerechtelijke incassokosten ter hoogte van €143,50.

Daarnaast loopt u het risico op een gerechtelijke procedure.

 

Hoogachtend,

Naam

Hoofdinspecteur

 

See also: 

How do I block phishing pop-ups

What does edpnet understand by internet abuse?

What can I do against internet abuse?