{"id":105453,"date":"2022-03-31T20:53:43","date_gmt":"2022-03-31T20:53:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/feedzai.com\/?p=105453"},"modified":"2024-04-09T09:16:47","modified_gmt":"2024-04-09T09:16:47","slug":"phishing-vishing-and-smishing-how-banks-and-consumers-can-foil-frauders-this-april-fools-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/feedzai.com\/blog\/phishing-vishing-and-smishing-how-banks-and-consumers-can-foil-frauders-this-april-fools-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Phishing, Vishing, and Smishing: How Banks and Consumers Can Foil Frauders this April Fool\u2019s Day"},"content":{"rendered":"
[vc_row row_height_percent=”0″ override_padding=”yes” h_padding=”2″ top_padding=”1″ bottom_padding=”2″ overlay_alpha=”50″ gutter_size=”3″ column_width_percent=”100″ shift_y=”0″ z_index=”0″][vc_column width=”1\/1″][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/12″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”10\/12″][vc_single_image media=”105459″ dynamic=”yes” media_width_percent=”100″ uncode_shortcode_id=”910265″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/12″][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner column_width_percent=”100″ gutter_size=”3″ overlay_alpha=”50″ shift_x=”0″ shift_y=”0″ shift_y_down=”0″ z_index=”0″ medium_width=”0″ mobile_visibility=”yes” mobile_width=”0″ width=”2\/12″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”8\/12″][vc_custom_heading heading_semantic=”h3″ text_size=”h3″ text_weight=”400″ uncode_shortcode_id=”117336″]Whether it\u2019s through installing malware via a phishing email, filling out fraudulent forms after receiving a smishing text, or speaking to an \u201cagent\u201d over a vishing call, fraudsters scam unsuspecting individuals into handing over their personally identifiable information (PII). Once criminals have the information, they commit <\/span>account takeover fraud<\/span><\/a> or <\/span>authorized push payments fraud<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_custom_heading][vc_column_text uncode_shortcode_id=”566443″]This April Fool\u2019s Day, we\u2019re foiling fraudsters by providing tips for how consumers and financial institutions can protect themselves from phishing in all its forms.<\/span><\/p>\n Why are <\/span>phishing<\/span><\/a> and its younger siblings, vishing and smishing, effective ways of facilitating scams? Partly because technology like bots and robocalls make these types of attacks easy to deploy, and easy to scale as the barrier to entry for a fraudster is low (they just need a phone and list of numbers). But the biggest contributor to phishing, smishing, and vishing attacks is the proliferation of online platforms and the information consumers share on social media.<\/span><\/p>\n Five years ago, people went to the movies. Today, they stream movies at home from an online platform. Thanks to the pandemic, grandmothers now shop for groceries online. I don\u2019t think anyone predicted that two years ago! Let\u2019s face it: our lives have fundamentally changed. We\u2019re online all the time.<\/span><\/p>\n Think about every part of your life that is conducted online. Bill payment, shopping, social connection, media consumption, banking, and communication, to name a few.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Now think about all of the accounts you have that fall into each of these categories. Multiple credit cards with multiple financial institutions. Multiple accounts for each social media platform. A plethora of shopping sites. The list goes on and on. Each account stores loads of information about a consumer and is a potential entrypoint for fraud.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n But it\u2019s not just the number of online accounts that\u2019s at issue; it\u2019s also the type of information that people share online.<\/span><\/p>\n There was recently a trend on Instagram where people shared the name of the cities or towns they were born in, raised in, and currently live in. What a treasure trove for criminals this trend provided! And therein lies the crux of the problem: people freely share their PII on social media.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Think of all the personal details people share online. When they go on vacation and where. The schools their children go to and how they\u2019re doing at school. Their middle names. It\u2019s not that hard for a fraudster to piece together enough facts about someone to compel them to click on malicious links.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n And as we know, it’s not just emails that fraudsters send. Text messages – smishing – is rife at the moment. I received two smishing attempts myself the other day. First, because it’s the end of the tax year here in the UK, I received one that tried to get me to fill out a form for a tax refund. Half an hour later, I got one saying that my annual TV license payment had been declined and to please click here. No thanks!<\/span><\/p>\n Note that scammers don\u2019t have to receive all of a victim\u2019s information in one attack. They can piece together bits of information combined with the details people share on social media to execute the kind of fraud that devastates victims.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Having worked at a bank myself, I know how fraud can ruin the lives of individuals, families, and companies. The truth is, consumers are the most important defense we have when it comes to stopping scams.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n There is no magic bullet to stop scams and fraud, but there are enormously powerful tools. Consumers are any financial institution\u2019s first line of defense. Educate them early and often. Technology is the next best tool. With behavioral biometrics and machine learning, financial institutions can process, combine, and take action on the multitude of insights they have about each customer to truly detect and prevent fraud. Together, consumers and financial institutions can stop fraudsters from fooling anyone on April Fool\u2019s Day and every day thereafter.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nGrowth of online platforms and social media create an ideal environment for fraud<\/span><\/h3>\n
Online platforms increase opportunities for fraud<\/span><\/h3>\n
Sharing personal information on social media fuels fraud<\/span><\/h3>\n
How Consumers and Banks Can Help Stop Phishing, Vishing, and Smishing Attacks to Prevent Fraud<\/span><\/h3>\n
How Consumers Can Help Prevent Fraud:\u00a0<\/span><\/h4>\n
\n
How Banks Can Help Prevent Phishing, Smishing, and Vishing scam:\u00a0<\/span><\/h4>\n
\n