For any number of reasons, you’ve likely clicked on your spam email folder from time to time. In doing so, you may have noticed that spam messages have grown more and more sophisticated over time. These days, spam emails often invoke real-life events such as pharmaceutical class action lawsuits or clergy abuse scandals as a way to lure more clicks.
These same scams have now taken to impersonating company bosses: Business email compromise scams are a huge problem with $43 billion lost and more than 240,000 incidents from 2016 to 2021 globally.
As phishing attempts that target business emails become increasingly difficult to identify, Twingate researched helpful ways to verify whether communications you’re receiving are really from coworkers, professional contacts, or your boss. These include some simple checks, such as making sure the email address is one you trust, or that a linked page really goes where it claims. The forthcoming tips also include more subtle forms of awareness, like asking yourself if your boss really uses language the way you see in the message or whether they would actually misspell your name—or theirs.
The best way to prevent these phishing scams in the long run is to continuously hone your gut instinct and be cautious when it tells you something smells fishy. When in doubt, hop on the phone, the company Slack channel, or your email and politely check with colleagues to be sure the message you received is real. Maybe your boss is on the go and typing too fast without paying close attention to typos, and they’ll appreciate your attention to detail.