Check Point® Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP), a top global provider of cybersecurity solutions, has released its Brand Phishing Report for Q4 2022 through Check Point Research (CPR), the Threat Intelligence division of the company. In an effort to steal people’s personal information or payment credentials in the months of October, November, and December of last year, cybercriminals most commonly replicated certain brands, according to the research.
Yahoo was the most impersonated brand for phishing attacks during Q4 2022, climbing 23 places and accounting for 20% of all attempts. Check Point Research found cybercriminals distributing emails with subject lines that suggested a recipient had won awards or prize money from senders such as ‘Awards Promotion’ or ‘Award Center’. The content of the email informed the target that they had won prize money organized by Yahoo, worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. It asked the recipient to send their personal information and bank details, claiming to transfer the winning prize money to the account. The email also contained a warning that the target must not tell people about winning the prize because of legal issues.
In general, the technology sector was the industry most likely to be imitated by brand phishing in the last quarter of 2022, followed by shipping and social networks. DHL came in second place with 16% of all brand phishing attempts, ahead of Microsoft in the third spot with 11%. LinkedIn also returned to the list this quarter, reaching fifth place with 5.7%. DHL’s popularity could be due to the busy online shopping season surrounding Black Friday and Cyber Monday, with hackers using the brand to generate ‘fake’ deliveries notifications.
Omer Dembinsky, Data Group Manager at Check Point Software said: “We are seeing hackers trying to bait their targets by offering awards and significant amounts of money. Remember, if it looks too good to be true, it almost always is. You can protect yourself from a brand phishing attack by not clicking on suspicious links or attachments and by always checking the URL of the page you are directed to. Look for misspellings and do not volunteer unnecessary information.”
Top 10 Most Imitated Brands
Below are the top brands ranked by their overall appearance in brand phishing attempts:
- Yahoo (20%)
- DHL (16%)
- Microsoft (11%)
- Google (5.8%)
- LinkedIn (5.7%)
- WeTransfer (5.3%)
- Netflix (4.4%)
- FedEx (2.5%)
- HSBC (2.3%)
- WhatsApp (2.2%)