Can you resist that email link?
Most cannot, according to Eric Johnson, a Vanderbilt professor.
We all like to know what that email, which looks quite legitimate, might bring us.
That link is going to take us to something fun or exciting. Maybe I did win $1,000,000 or a new car. Yeah, I do think I have a long lost relative in the Ukraine.
The email, which looks quite legitimate, is called spear-phishing and is an attempt by the perpetrators for financial gain.
And human beings are hard-wired to make that click, an urge which over-rides any training we may have received on avoiding phishing scams.
A study, “Going Spear Phishing: Exploring Embedded Training and Awareness,” which Johnson co-authored of the Institute for Information Infrastructure Protection and Dartmouth College, also shows how a single spear-phishing campaign can generate as much as $150,000 in profits.
Now who is having the fun and excitement?
Wayne Wickham is manager of MSCAd at Advisen. He is responsible for the property & casualty, professional liability, and specialty risk content in MSCAd, focusing on developing the database of cyber events and cases in MSCAd. Wayne is Advisen’s expert in cyber risk management and has 35 years of experience in the insurance industry.
