Social Engineering Red Flags #2: Recipient

The prevalence of phishing scams is at an all-time high. With you being the key to preventing a cyber attack within your organization, it is important to question the legitimacy of every email you receive. Below is a list of questions to ask yourself about the recipient of the email that may help you realize that you are being phished.

TO: Analyze who was the email sent to.

Were you CC’d on an email and you don’t personally know the other people it was sent to? Or was the email sent to an unusual mix of people? For example, a seemingly random group of people with unrelated email addresses, or a group of people at your organization whose last names all start with the same letter.

If you notice anything about the email that alarms you, do not click links, open attachments, or reply. You are the last line of defense to prevent cyber criminals from succeeding and making you or your company susceptible to phishing attacks.