If there’s one thing SpongeBob SquarePants and Squidward can agree on is how to spot phishing emails—bogus messages carefully designed to look like a legitimate message (or attached file) from a site or person you trust. Their goal is getting you to willingly give up your login information or unknowingly click a link to install a virus. The best of these emails looks uncannily like their real-world counterparts, but there are ways to discern a phishing attempt from a legitimate email.
First, hover over—but don’t click on—the URL in the email to see the actual website to which you’ll be directed. If there’s a mismatched or suspicious URL, delete the email immediately. Other telltale signs are poor grammar or spelling errors. And, if the email asks you to verify or validate your login or personal information, cut your line immediately!
Don’t be caught up in the nautical nonsense of phishing emails. Want more tips about staying safe online? Click here to schedule a free consultation.
First published in our March 2019 IT Radix Resource newsletter