How good are you at spotting phishing scams?

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Here’s a ten question test to show that it’s not quite as easy as you think…

John

PS The full article which contains the above link is here.

PPS I got them all correct. Honest!

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80% for me…

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I got 100%, but I’ll admit that I outright guessed on one.

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What’s interesting is that this is only a visual test. I don’t want to spoil this thread by saying too much, but I always go to a particular site by opening my browser and typing in the URL myself. You can’t be too careful!

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What’s interesting is that this is only a visual test. I don’t want to spoil this thread by saying too much, but I always go to a particular site by opening my browser and typing in the URL myself. You can’t be too careful!

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I got 100%, but I’ll admit that I outright guessed on one.

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I just said that they were ALL scams. 70 %

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I managed 80% – I missed the last two Pay Pal examples, boo hiss

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I managed 80% – I missed the last two Pay Pal examples, boo hiss

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This is way too cool, I received two today and was just about to post it as a warning, and then I saw this thread. Take a look at the one I received today (got the same message twice). It fooled the heck out of me at first, until I looked at the source info.

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Here is the source screen capture, I cannot remember if there is a way to post two attachments in the same post, so here goes the second.

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And here is the actual address from the link in the email,

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And here is the actual address from the link in the email,

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Here is the source screen capture, I cannot remember if there is a way to post two attachments in the same post, so here goes the second.

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Mike

Well spotted! I rather like the address service.paypal.CON !

Another reason to avoid PayPal (apart from all the others, that is…)

John

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Mike

Well spotted! I rather like the address service.paypal.CON !

Another reason to avoid PayPal (apart from all the others, that is…)

John

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This is way too cool, I received two today and was just about to post it as a warning, and then I saw this thread. Take a look at the one I received today (got the same message twice). It fooled the heck out of me at first, until I looked at the source info.

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80% for me too.

That means 20% of the time I’d make a mistake if I bothered reading these things. Like Bob and Mark, I never touch commercial links in e-mails. These day, I can’t think of a good reason why one would do something so foolish. Unless of course, they enjoy grief and trouble. Then it’s not foolish…. it’s entertainment !!

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IMO people are lonely. I see no other explanation of why so many people feel compelled to read everything everyone sends them whether they know the person or not. They must be desperate for someone to talk to. That’s all I can think of anyway. Personally I like being alone, much of the time. Peace & quiet gives me time to think. But then that’s another observation I’ve made-most people don’t like to think.

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I think it’s also that people are afraid that they’ll miss something. Before answer machines, everyone ran to answer a telephone (at least in the U.S.), lest they miss that “important” call. This is kind of the same thing, like a lottery…but with much worse odds.

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Could be. For me, it boils down to the same thing-but then I’m happy with what I have, love my wife, etc.

I’ve never understood why people have extra-marital affairs. If they’re happy at home then why risk it? If they aren’t happy at home then why don’t they split up? I think it must be what you’re talking about-to me it’s just greed. What I have might not be the best that’s possible, but it’s good enough for me. If I’m happy with what I have then I’m not going to worry about ‘missing out’ on something, better or not. Good enough is good enough for me. (Jeez-I’m making a hash out of explaining this.)

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I think you’re describing something quite different, perhaps a topic for the Scuttlebutt board. Most of these phishing scams are made up to appear to come from banks or eBay or PayPal, etc., designed to scare people into thinking they need to act immediately on something critical to them: their money.

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You’re right. For me it’s easy to drift across the line from how to recognize a phishing scam to why do people open them in the first place-at least half the ones I get (or I assume that what I get are phishing scams-can’t be sure since I don’t open them) are from banks/people with whom I have no relationship. Common sense tells me that a message sent ‘blind’-as these obviously are-is likely to be a scam. And that, I hope, brings this thread back to how to recognize phishing rather than the ‘why do people open them’ that I drifted into. Sorry ’bout that.

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Right………. back to phishing !!

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So MichaelRead should change his userpic?

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Ouch!

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Ouch!

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Nah……… Michael wouldn’t do that. He’s a Lounger.

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Nah……… Michael wouldn’t do that. He’s a Lounger.

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LOL, probably make tons more cash and have fewer headaches! Maybe I could upgrade to XP pretty cheap?

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LOL, probably make tons more cash and have fewer headaches! Maybe I could upgrade to XP pretty cheap?

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I’m hanging with Hans for a while, waiting on a nibble!

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I’m hanging with Hans for a while, waiting on a nibble!

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So MichaelRead should change his userpic?

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Right………. back to phishing !!

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You’re right. For me it’s easy to drift across the line from how to recognize a phishing scam to why do people open them in the first place-at least half the ones I get (or I assume that what I get are phishing scams-can’t be sure since I don’t open them) are from banks/people with whom I have no relationship. Common sense tells me that a message sent ‘blind’-as these obviously are-is likely to be a scam. And that, I hope, brings this thread back to how to recognize phishing rather than the ‘why do people open them’ that I drifted into. Sorry ’bout that.

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I think you’re describing something quite different, perhaps a topic for the Scuttlebutt board. Most of these phishing scams are made up to appear to come from banks or eBay or PayPal, etc., designed to scare people into thinking they need to act immediately on something critical to them: their money.

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Could be. For me, it boils down to the same thing-but then I’m happy with what I have, love my wife, etc.

I’ve never understood why people have extra-marital affairs. If they’re happy at home then why risk it? If they aren’t happy at home then why don’t they split up? I think it must be what you’re talking about-to me it’s just greed. What I have might not be the best that’s possible, but it’s good enough for me. If I’m happy with what I have then I’m not going to worry about ‘missing out’ on something, better or not. Good enough is good enough for me. (Jeez-I’m making a hash out of explaining this.)

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I think it’s also that people are afraid that they’ll miss something. Before answer machines, everyone ran to answer a telephone (at least in the U.S.), lest they miss that “important” call. This is kind of the same thing, like a lottery…but with much worse odds.

Reply | Quote

IMO people are lonely. I see no other explanation of why so many people feel compelled to read everything everyone sends them whether they know the person or not. They must be desperate for someone to talk to. That’s all I can think of anyway. Personally I like being alone, much of the time. Peace & quiet gives me time to think. But then that’s another observation I’ve made-most people don’t like to think.

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80% for me too.

That means 20% of the time I’d make a mistake if I bothered reading these things. Like Bob and Mark, I never touch commercial links in e-mails. These day, I can’t think of a good reason why one would do something so foolish. Unless of course, they enjoy grief and trouble. Then it’s not foolish…. it’s entertainment !!

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