Phishing uses deceptive messages to steal credentials or deliver malware, while user verification, MFA, and email filtering reduce the risk.
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Background for this topic.
Phishing is deceptive communication—by email, text, phone, or a fake website—that impersonates a trusted person or service to make someone disclose credentials, approve a transaction, reveal sensitive information, or run harmful software. Attackers use it to bypass technical controls by persuading a legitimate user to perform an action, and may target employees, customers, administrators, or suppliers.
Its impact can include account takeover, unauthorized payments, exposure of personal or business data, and access to internal systems. The most effective control for stolen-password phishing is phishing-resistant multi-factor authentication, such as hardware-backed passkeys or security keys, which binds authentication to the legitimate site. Organizations should also filter and authenticate messaging where possible, use password managers, restrict risky actions, train users to verify unusual requests through a separate channel, and provide rapid reporting so suspected credentials or sessions can be revoked.
Email Security Acquisition Aims to Bring Cross-Platform Data to Phishing DefenseKaseya’s acquisition of Inky reflects the need for broader platform integration in email security. With phishing attacks becoming more subtle, founder and CEO Dave Baggett says access to login data and other platform signals is critical for threat detection.
2020 Hack Has Cost EyeMed About $12.6M in Multiple Regulatory Fines, SettlementsBenefits provider EyeMed Vision Care has agreed to pay $5 million and improve its security practices to settle class action litigation involving a 2020 phishing breach. The incident has been the subject of previous multimillion dollar settlements and enforcement actions by multiple state regulators.