A new study conducted by the researchers at the University of Texas at San Antonio reveals that overconfident email recipients are actually helping phishing succeed. So when it comes to phishing scams, being under confident is a good strategy to follow.
The problem with phishing emails and overconfidence lies in the fact that most people believe they’re smarter than the criminals behind the scams, which makes them an easy prey. “Many times, people think they know more than they actually do, and are smarter than someone trying to pull of a scam via an e-mail,” said H.R. Rao, a UTSA College of Business faculty member.
It’s no wonder really, as phishing is evolving alongside the Internet. It’s become rare to see an obvious scam – nowadays, they’re much more subtle. Often they look like regular emails from companies that ordinary people trust. This is because cyber criminals are getting better and better at mimicking the logos of the popular companies.
The solution? Becoming more educated about the phishing subject and being less confident about it. Rao even suggests citizen workshops and online games that inform people of the new dangers of the Internet.
Reference:
University of Texas at San Antonio(http://www.utsa.edu/today/2017/01/phishing.html)
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