Understanding the Threat of Spear Phishing to Avoid Targeted Cyber-Attacks

Cyber-attacks are not a new phenomenon. Unfortunately, they've been around as long as the internet itself. What has changed, however, is the way these attacks are being delivered.

While in the past, hackers would attempt to take down an entire network or steal credit card information, today's attackers are much more targeted.

One such targeted attack is the spear phishing attack. We're going to talk about what spear phishing is and how it works, and how you can keep yourself and your business safe from this type of attack. 

What is Spear Phishing?

Spear phishing is a cyberattack in which a malicious actor or group of actors target a specific individual or organization, using social-engineering tactics to trick them into performing actions or divulging confidential information. Basically, it is a highly targeted phishing attack. Unlike traditional phishing, which casts a wide net in the hopes of catching a few victims, spear phishing is highly focused and personalized.

Attackers often gather information about their targets through social media or other public sources before launching their attack.

This makes spear phishing much more effective, as it targets specific individuals or organizations who are more likely to click on a link or open an attachment.

It's common for hackers to pose as CEOs, COOs, or CFOs to create a sense of urgency and send bogus emails to staff requesting sensitive information or giving hackers access to specific platforms and accounts. In fact, 22% of CEOs are targeted by spear phishing attacks.

How Does Spear Phishing Work?

Spear phishing works by targeting individuals or groups with personalized emails that appear to be from a trusted source. The attacker will research their victims beforehand to collect information that can be used to make the email seem more legitimate, such as the victim’s name, job title, or company.

Spear phishing emails are often well-crafted and convincing. For example, they may know that the victim is traveling to a certain country over the next few days, so they'll send an email that appears to be from the airline or a hotel in that country. The email will include a fake reservation confirmation or flight details, and may even include a malicious link.

If the victim falls for this and clicks on the link, they'll be taken to a website that looks exactly like the real thing. But this is actually a scam site, designed to steal the victim's login credentials or harvest their personal information.

The email will usually contain a link or attachment that, if clicked, will install malware on the victim’s computer or devices. The attacker can then use this malware to gain access to the victim’s personal information, such as passwords or financial data.

Recognizing Spear Phishing Attempts

Spear phishing attacks can be difficult to detect, as they often look like ordinary emails from trusted sources. However, there are some red flags that you can look out for. Here's a few things you can do to spot a spear phishing attempt:

A rule of thumb to spot spear phishing attempts is to examine unexpected or suspicious emails thoroughly. Double-check the sender's name, email address, and format. Oftentimes, spear phishing emails will use a variation of the original sender's name and email address. The spoofed email may look like it came from a trusted source but will often use a typo or a different domain. 

Secondly, when in doubt, make a phone call to the sender. If you receive an email that seems suspicious, the safest thing to do is to call the sender directly and verify the email is legitimate. 

Lastly, always scan attachments for malware before opening them. Spear phishing emails can be persuasive enough to make you open an attachment without verifying the source. But these attachments may be laced with malware that can give the attacker remote access to your computer. Therefore, it is important to be cautious about opening attachments.

Protecting Against Spear Phishing

Here are some things you can do to protect yourself from spear phishing attacks:

- Be suspicious of unsolicited emails, even if they appear to be from someone you know. If you're not expecting an email from someone, don't open it.

- Don't click on links or open attachments in emails unless you're absolutely sure they're safe. If you're not sure, go to the website directly by typing in the URL yourself.

- Keep your antivirus and anti-malware software up to date. This will help protect your computer from malicious software that could be used in a spear phishing attack.

- Be careful about what personal information you share online. The less information you share, the less there is for attackers to use against you.

- Keep an eye out for spoofed websites. These are websites that look like they're legitimate, but are actually created by attackers to trick you into entering your login information. If you're not sure if a website is legitimate, check the URL carefully before entering any sensitive information.

Spear Phishing vs Other Types of Phishing

While spear phishing attacks are much more targeted and personalized, phishing emails are not the same. Phishing attacks do not target specific individuals and are typically delivered to large groups of people at the same time. Phishing attacks aim to send a fake email (or other message) that appears to be from a legitimate company to a large number of individuals, hoping that someone would click on that link and submit personal information or download malware. 

Whaling attacks are also highly targeted attacks that are delivered to high-level individuals such as people in leadership positions, senior employees, celebrities, or public figures. Sometimes, the attacker may masquerade as C-level executives in order to obtain sensitive information or finances from staff. Whaling, like spear phishing, is targeted, but it only goes for the big fish.

So, spear phishing is a subset of phishing in which the attacker targets specific individuals with personalized messages, and whaling is a subset of spear phishing where the attacker targets only high-ranking individuals with personalized messages.

Conclusion

Social engineering remains a pertinent threat to businesses and individuals alike and its prevalence and severity will only increase as time goes on. Bad actors are now using automated tools to conduct large-scale campaigns, and trick more people into giving away their personal information or downloading malware. The only way to combat this growing threat is to have the appropriate security controls in place and stay vigilant.

Prevent Phishing with Evolve

EvolveCTI incorporates cyber threat intelligence into your security architecture automatically to safeguard your company continuously. One of its many significant features is spam and phishing intelligence, which helps you avoid being a victim of phishing attempts. Moreover, EvolveID scans your business email accounts and domain names for any compromised credentials. Schedule a demo with us to learn more about how Evolve products can help you combat phishing attacks.