Voicemail Phishing is on the rise - Don't be a victim!
If your inbox is anything like mine then throughout the day you are likely to be receiving a steady flow of emails - some expected, some are nice surprises but some are just down right nasty. Phishing emails are definitely in the latter category and, unfortunately, it seems they are becoming ever more frequent and more accurate making it increasingly difficult to decide what's legitimate and what's not.
So what's that got to do with voicemail then? With the increasing use of voicemail-to-email services this is just another way the sneaky phishers are trying to trick you so it's important you be vigilant and know what to look out for. The following guide will help you spot a phishing scam and avoid becoming a victim.
Below are two screen shots showing two emails apparently telling me I have a voicemail message. Only one is legitimate and the other will have a nasty surprise but which is which?
So what's that got to do with voicemail then? With the increasing use of voicemail-to-email services this is just another way the sneaky phishers are trying to trick you so it's important you be vigilant and know what to look out for. The following guide will help you spot a phishing scam and avoid becoming a victim.
Below are two screen shots showing two emails apparently telling me I have a voicemail message. Only one is legitimate and the other will have a nasty surprise but which is which?
Smells Phishy: Exhibit A, but is it genuine?
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Clone Phish: Exhibit B, A phake hake?
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As you can see there are a number of differences in terms of format and layout but if you take nothing away from this guide then make sure you look at the attachments. Our genuine voicemail-to-email message will simply send you a .wav (or Waveform audio format) file. The fake email has a .zip file attachment which is a method of compressing multiple attachments so that they can be easily sent via email. Unfortunately, the less savoury side of the web use this as a delivery method for viruses, malware, etc.
As good practise, unless you know, trust and are expecting a .zip fiile from the sender I always tend to delete it without a second thought.
That's all well and good but one of the key benefits of voicemail-to-email is that you can instantly listen to and react to your voicemail messages through your smartphone so what should you be looking for? Again, the following images show a genuine and fake phising email message sent to my Apple iPhone
As good practise, unless you know, trust and are expecting a .zip fiile from the sender I always tend to delete it without a second thought.
That's all well and good but one of the key benefits of voicemail-to-email is that you can instantly listen to and react to your voicemail messages through your smartphone so what should you be looking for? Again, the following images show a genuine and fake phising email message sent to my Apple iPhone
Exhibit A: Top
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Exhibit A: Bottom
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Exhibit B: Top
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Exhibit B: Bottom
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Yet again, there is very little to choose between them apart from the file attachment. .wav is our genuine voicemail-to-email and the .zip is the fake phishing email. Also, but don't rely on this content being present each time you receive and phishing email, I have no idea who "Alinta Gas" is.
