In my view, internet fraud is a major concern because hackers can steal a person’s identity through methods such as email phishing, online banking access, private emails, and social security numbers.

As Naskar (2021) states, “Billion-dollar scams aren’t the only frauds; even greed worth a single dollar can be a crime” (p. 55). Fraudsters may acquire or collect various amounts of money or information. There are several reasons that support this idea.

The most common form of fraud is email phishing. Emails promising a prize or reward are another common online scam tactic.

In addition to these methods, attackers also employ malware that is triggered when a user opens an unusual file or visits a suspicious webpage.

Most importantly, people should be cautious about email phishing. Phishing poses a major risk to both business owners and online shoppers who conduct transactions on the internet. According to PTI (2022), “Globally, email spam costs businesses nearly USD 20 billion (17 billion pounds) every year.” This underscores how serious email phishing can be, affecting individuals from business owners to everyday internet users who perform online financial transactions. There are various ways to detect email phishing.

To be detected, these fraudulent phishing attempts seek essential details via email, often use non-domain addresses, frequently contain misspelled wording, and urge people to click a link or download an attachment.

The link can steal information like passwords, credit card numbers, and Social Security numbers. Consequently, online fraud is a major problem.

Secondly, online scams often use messages claiming there’s a prize to win. Many sophisticated phishing schemes feature an extended ruse where attackers create fake platform accounts and emails to trick people into sharing money and personal data.

To claim the prize, victims are asked for details such as their name, date of birth, address, and banking information. As Muschick noted, the deceitful messages describe a 55-pound trunk supposedly sent from the United Kingdom via Africa containing $2–8 million in cash, “waiting at Atlanta’s Hartsfield International Airport with your name on it.”

Beyond this, there are additional tactics and highly convincing emails that can deceive people into losing control of themselves. These fraudulent messages may be ignored or blocked. Overall, online fraud is a major issue.

Hackers often deploy malware that installs only after a user clicks on a suspicious file or link. Succumbing to these deceptive emails, people reveal sensitive details such as their name, date of birth, address, and banking information. With this stolen data, the fraudsters can gain access to and drain the victim’s bank account.

This isn’t limited to a single person. These criminals also steal data from businesses. As Lumpur (2020) notes: “Recent research shows that more than 80% of breaches result from weak or stolen passwords, since access to corporate networks and applications is increasingly through company-provided mobile devices or employees’ personal devices.” A lone employee can be deceived into collecting information about a major organization from multiple sources.

Several organizations deliberately implement safeguards to avoid being deceived. These steps can help reduce the chances of falling for scams.

To sum up, email phishing is a form of cybercrime that deceives people into giving up personal information and funds. Several prevention strategies exist, such as using anti-phishing software, providing security training for individuals or employees, verifying the security of websites, and, most crucially, staying vigilant about phishing emails.

Roberts (2021) notes that the term “PHishing” stems from a hacker’s habit of substituting “PH” for the letter “F.” Its purpose is to trick people into revealing passwords or other sensitive data.

Reference

Naskar, Abhijit.2021.Giants in Jeans: 100 Sonnets of United Earth.Atlantic Publishers.

Roberts, Max.(2021, April 10).Is it fishing or phishing? Incognito.

https://www.goincognito.co/is-it-fishing-or-phishing/

Muschick, Paul(2017, February 24). Email scam claims trunk of cash is being held for you at the airport.The Morning Call.