How to defend against phishing emails

A prevalent threat faced by UK firms of all sizes, phishing emails are issued by malicious actors and are designed to harm companies.

Here, we examine the threat level of these insidious messages and how to deal with them.

Hidden threats in phishing emails

More than mere spam that clogs up company inboxes, phishing emails are created with malicious intent. They may impersonate trusted entities like banks, governments or colleagues and collaborators to put recipients at ease and attempt to acquire sensitive information.

However, they can also include files for download that contain computer viruses and other malware, or links to fake websites designed to steal usernames and passwords.

Phishing messages are often the first step in cybercriminal campaigns against companies, and can lead to serious situations like expensive data breaches and ransomware attacks.

Protection from phishing

To defend against phishing, make your workplace cyber aware. Train your team to spot indicators like urgent requests for information, spoofed sender addresses and incorrect English. Create a clear line of reporting so your staff know who to inform on receipt of a malicious missive.

Technical solutions can be installed that watchdog your company email system and filter harmful messages, quarantining them where they can’t cause chaos. Systems can also be configured to allow legitimate messages to arrive promptly unimpacted by security measures, so productivity isn’t affected.

If you need cybersecurity advice and solutions, we can help. Get in touch with our engineers at 127 solutions today for rapid answers to your IT issues.