39Avoid Phishing Like the Plague

Phishing is an illegal process for trying to get you to divulge your personal information, such as passwords, usernames, credit card numbers, bank account information, and Social Security numbers. In order to fool you, the e-mails appear to be coming from services to which you subscribe, such as PayPal, Youtube, Facebook, eBay, or your bank. The message provides a link to a Website that looks, feels, and smells just like the real thing; even experts have a problem knowing the difference.

Once on the Web page you are asked to enter personal information in order to log in and “verify” your identity—except that the information is captured for illicit purposes. Successful phishing trips often result in financial loss ...

Get E-mail in an Instant now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.