Die Consumer Center North Rhine-Westphalia continuously lists the latest phishing emails as part of its phishing radar. Of course, the list is not exhaustive; other emails are also in circulation. However, it shows which e-mails users should definitely keep an eye out for at the moment. For the current week, these include the following companies and organizations:
- savings bank
- postal bank
- LBB
- Disney+
Current Phishing Situation – Three Banks and Disney+
savings bank
Sparkasse customers are currently being confronted with an unusual email. A revision of the systems is discussed therein. As well as the associated need to re-register. The recipients can easily do this via a so-called “direct link” in the email. The savings bank is said to have integrated this “innovative function” in order to minimize the effort for its own customers. Nevertheless, you should keep your hands off the link, because the e-mail is a phishing attack. The goal: the user data of the potential victim. Cyber criminals can use these to commit identity theft, conduct targeted phishing or even withdraw money from the account. It is therefore advisable to put the e-mail in the spam folder unanswered. The warning contained in the message, which includes deactivation of the account and activation fees, can safely be ignored.
postal bank
Another phishing e-mail that is currently ending up in the digital inboxes of bank customers is said to have come from Postbank: “In order to counteract the fraudulent use of bank cards on the Internet, Postbank has a new payment control system,” the e-mail says – Spelling mistakes included. The service is completely free. The recipient is then asked to reactivate the “BestSign” process. Again via a stored link that should be avoided again. On the one hand because of the numerous spelling mistakes, on the other hand because of the anything but convincing optics.
Incidentally, the text of such phishing emails could become clearly authentic in the near future. A self-learning AI provides the necessary software for this.
LBB
For their part, LBB customers are confronted with a blocked credit card. This was blocked for security reasons. Now the recipient has to confirm his identity in order to activate the card again. Of course again via a stored link. This email should also be sent to the spam folder. Especially since in addition to the LBB logo also that of the ADAC and from Amazon are displayed. Direct customer contact? None!
Disney+
In addition to the three banks listed above, cybercriminals are currently also targeting customers of the Disney+ streaming service. This is about a payment problem, which is said to have led to the cancellation of the subscription. Fortunately, the subscription can be reactivated via a stored link.
The e-mail is of a high standard, both linguistically and visually, and a direct customer approach is also available. The fraudsters may have acquired the name of the recipient on the Darknet. And your access data could also end up there if you respond to the phishing email. You can find out whether your e-mail is actually circulating on the Darknet in our guide.
Phishing 2023 – Previous Cases
The list of phishing attempts in Germany is getting longer and longer. It is clear that it mainly affects large companies. You have many customers and therefore many potential victims of phishing. This list shows which companies have already been used by phishing scammers to steal your data or money in 2023:
- Amazon
- Bitcoin Extortion
- Comdirect
- DKB
- ING
- LBB
- PayPal
- postal bank
- savings bank
What is phishing actually?
When one thinks of cybercriminals, Hollywood images of strangers in hoodies sitting in a basement in front of five screens gazing at the Pentagon automatically spring to mind. However, the truth is often very different. Because you don’t need five screens or a great deal of knowledge about security software to get hold of Internet users’ money. Even a hoodie is not absolutely necessary for this. Many users voluntarily reveal their access data when asked to do so.
All that is required is an e-mail with the Amazon look, for example, informing the recipient of unusual account activity or a change in the terms and conditions. The victim is then prompted to perform authorization by clicking a link and logging into their account. Only the link does not lead to the Amazon website, but to a copy. The login data entered here end up directly with the cyber criminals. There is now a veritable industry behind phishing.
Other scams & protection mechanisms:
How to recognize phishing emails
Once the scammers have captured your user data, they can use it for identity theft, for example. If the login details belong to a service linked to the bank account, your wallet could suffer as well. That’s why you should pay attention to e-mails in general and to messages from the providers mentioned above in particular. Does the email have spelling mistakes? What about direct customer contact? Is the sender or the sender’s email address in the header of the email really PayPal? Does the linked website belong to the online payment service, or is the URL rather cryptic? All of these questions can unmask a phishing email.
Another good self-protection measure is two-factor authentication (2FA). This is double login protection, in which a second login barrier is set up in addition to the login data – for example in the form of a code that refers to a previously stored one phone number will be provided. As a rule, cybercriminals cannot get hold of this so easily. Although this protective line is not insurmountable either. You can find more information on this topic in our phishing guide.
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