Fran’s Gone Phishing – Entry 5 – Oh so Damaged

‘I will love to be the one that makes my potential mate have a more nicer time.’ 😻

No, this is not how I structure my cold outreach… and I’ve not been hacked either, dear reader. 🛑

This is the subject line of an e-mail from Mr Parves (mrparves01938@gmail.com) who would have been the subject of our Fran’s Gone Phishing security feature this week…but the language of that Phish is a bit too eye-watering to repeat here 👹 👺.

Hopefully, it goes without saying that any subject line along those lines is a big red flag and you should send that straight to the bin 🚮 🔻.

I wanted to discuss this Google impersonated phish, as it is one that will get some people and I want you to be aware of what it looks like, what it says and why you may be more at risk of this phish than others. 🐠

Firstly, many people use Google Apps and services these days. I myself prefer it to Microsoft. This phish has some elements such as the Google address, logo and layout that could be fairly interpreted as legitimate. 🔎

Psychologically, being told something of yours that you’ve spent time on, such as your work files being damaged and not repairable, may illicit a stronger more emotional response from you than the general phishes we see. 💔

You may, without thinking about it, if you haven’t spotted the danger signs 1) E-mail address and 2) the lack of content, click the ‘more information’ or other high concentration of scum links in a panic. 🔗

This is where you’ve got to remember to be diligent and start mentally from a position of not believing e-mails are legitimate, until you can prove they are when scanning them. 🤓

It’s an 8/10 phish in my books due to this psychological intimidation. Don’t get caught out.

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