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Anti-Phishing Guide
Friday, November 20, 2009
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Washington Mutual - "WAMU users Must Read"
This phishing scam appeared as if it was sent from Washington Mutual.
Read below to discover why it's an imposter.
Clues that this email is phished:
- The email is not specifically addressed to anyone
- It tries to make you believe that if you don't take any action, your account will be suspended. This is meant to make you panic.
- You have to follow a link to "enroll"
Below is the website that this email directs you to. It askes you to enroll in a program that attaches a "security word" to your
credit card so that you will be protected from fraud. The authors of this scam are hoping that
you won't notice that you are already in the process of being defrauded.
Clues that this website it a hoax:
- The URL "http://219.95.137.132/https:3DSecureCard.wamu.com/?enroll=..." will look totally
bogus to the seasoned websurfer, but to a novice, the fact that it contains "https:3DSecureCard.wamu.com"
might be reassuring.
- All the links on this page except for the "go" link under the form link back to
the read WAMU site.
- This scam compares itself to "Verified by VISA" and MasterCard's "Security Word" which
are both popular and safe.
- The form doesn't ask for too much personal information like your address or Social Security Number. The
phishers just stick to your credit card info.
- This web page matches the rest of the WAMU site.
- The popup that comes from this site adds an extra sense of urgency.
How do you protect yourself from a Phishing scam?
First, it is important to understand that legitimate businesses should never ask for
your personal information through an email. But since not all legitimate businesses follow
this protocol, you should have some extra protection to know the difference between an
honest email and a hoax.
With Secure IE Browser Security you can rest assured that no phisher will be able to
fool you.
Secure IE's Security Manager allows you to corral your favorite sites (like your bank or
eBay etc) into security zones that you can see at the bottom of your browser
window. Think of security zones like you would a traffic light. Green means "Go",
Yellow means "Caution" and Red means "Stop". If you click on a link in an email and it
sends you to what you think is your bank's website, simply check the security zone at the
bottom of the page.
Since you trust your bank lets say you have categorized it as:
However, the link you clicked on takes you to a page that looks like either of these:
Since the security zone is different, this immediately warns you that you are in
dangerous waters and it is likely the site is an imposter.
Phishing is just one of the ways that a hacker can attack your computer.
Here's how Secure IE's multifaceted security protects your computer:
- Stops Spyware at the point of entry by restricting ActiveX to a
"safelist" of authorized software
- Blocks popups that are often used by hackers as a gateway to installing
programs you don't want on your system.
- Features an automatic security tune-up that scans your PC, detects and
corrects current browser security problems.
Get the Protection You Need
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