Valentine’s Day isn’t just a day for romance. It’s a time of year when cyber criminals and scammers launch attacks such as phishing, vishing, smishing, and social engineering. Australia has begun issuing warnings to singles, informing them of the “pig butchering” or “romance baiting” scam that’s prominent on Valentine’s Day. It starts with the attacker assuming the identity of an attractive and...

QR codes have come a long way since being invented in 1994 by a subsidiary of Toyota. Initially introduced to address some limitations of barcodes during the car manufacturing process, QR codes have since become staples in people’s day-to-day lives. The introduction of high-powered cameras to most modern smartphones is what allowed these codes to gain new uses. QR codes, easily generated and cost...

“On the internet, nobody knows you’re a dog.” Cartoon by Peter Steiner There’s a reason this cartoon gained popularity in 1993 and has now become an iconic representation of how the internet works. The internet provides a way for people to hide their real identities, which can unfortunately lead to dishonest activities. Nowadays, scammers take advantage of this to deceive people who...

Less of a cyber security threat and closer to a scam, Vishing refers to attempts to steal information or money over the phone by convincing the victim. These calls often use personal data acquired through previous cyber attacks to gain their victim’s trust. This type of threat is definitely on the rise—especially with the help of AI. Like many other hacks and scams, Vishing is a popular attack...

Cellphones have seen one of the most dramatic technological growths of any hardware in recent history. From simple portable phones a few decades ago, they’ve become fully-fledged computers with their own OS and applications used daily by most people worldwide. Smartphones have become such a fixture of life, and hackers and scammers have been working to exploit these devices for personal gain....

An urgent voicemail message from the tax department. A text message from Microsoft tech support warning you about a problem with your computer. A caller asking you to confirm your mailing address and credit card number so you can collect your free prize. A text message requesting your confirmation of an Amazon shipment. These are all examples of smishing and vishing cyber attacks. They have...

Spoofing refers to an attack where hackers use various ways to disguise their identity so that their victims think they are talking to their coworker, boss, or business. The methods used to achieve this are the typical phishing tropes such as fake websites, links, and social engineering. When spoofing is involved, it’s often more helpful to focus on detecting the facade rather than looking at the...

(7 min read) Hint: It has everything to do with effective mobile learning. The past decade’s explosion of smartphone and tablet usage has magnified the importance of well-designed mobile responsive content as a vital part of any training program. Recent studies echo clear mobile learning preference statistics, including how: 70% of learners feel more motivated when training on a mobile device...

Know how to identify and prevent a spoofing attack Spoofing attacks are the ultimate form of cybercriminal trickery and deception. Cybercriminals disguise themselves and rely on trust to steal confidential information, install ransomware, and commit other cybercrimes. Spoofing comes down to trust. Cybercriminals hide behind trusted people, domains, URLs, and the technical elements that make up a...