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.
The Anti-Phishing Working Group observed how attackers are increasingly abusing QR codes to conduct phishing attacks or to trick users into downloading malware.
Microsoft, PayPal, Docusign, and others are among the trusted brands threat actors use in socially engineered scams that try to get victims to call adversary-controlled phone numbers.
A Russian APT known as "Gamaredon" is using spear-phishing attacks and network-drive weaponization to target government entities in Ukraine.
Just as attackers have used SEO techniques to poison search engine results, they could rinse and repeat with artificial intelligence and the responses LLMs generate from user prompts.
Teaching employees to detect malicious emails isn't really having an impact. What other options do organizations have?