How do I recognise a phishing email?
Phishing (derived from the English fishing for 'fishing') revolves around emails that at first glance seem quite normal. Such a message usually contains an invented reason to get you to enter personal data or install a malicious program. For example, a phishing email contains a link to a forged bank login page or tries to trick you into opening an attachment.



The NHL Stenden Hogeschool spam filter already blocks most spam and phishing messages. But cyber criminals are getting smarter and smarter and so phishing emails sometimes end up in your inbox. If that happens, you have to delete such a message immediately.



How do you recognise phishing? There's no perfect way. But there are many ways to protect yourself. Below you'll find 10 tips on how to recognize phishing.



If you have clicked on a link and/or entered information, in particular your username and password, please report this ALWAYS via the e-mail address phishing@nhlstenden.com or by telephone at the service area via 058-251 2552.



1. Do you know the sender?



Does an unknown sender ask you to open an attachment (e.g. an invoice), click on a link or check personal details (such as login details, bank details or credit card details)? Don't do it and delete the mail immediately!



2. Fraudsters with a fake address



A lot of senders pretend to be from a well-known company. For example, the 'eBay billing service'. Sometimes you recognize these fraudsters immediately because they use a dubious e-mail address, such as ebayfacturen@gmail.com. But even reliable-looking addresses are sometimes fake. So don't rely blindly on a correct e-mail address.



3. ‘Dear customer’



Real emails from companies usually use your name in the preamble. Phishing mails usually have a general preamble, such as "Dear customer". But sometimes cybercriminals do have your name and appeal to you. So here, too, the rule is: pay close attention.



4. Don't let the pressure be put on you



"Only valid today! - Check your details as soon as possible, otherwise your credit card will be blocked! - Last reminder! Phishing emails often try to put pressure on you. But don't ever allow that, because a serious sender doesn't work this way. So check such an e-mail message extra carefully before you decide to respond. And note: in the Netherlands, credit card companies and banks never ask for your personal details to be checked or entered by e-mail.



5. Look fo speling mistaks



Phishingmails can often be identified by spelling mistakes, a layout that is not entirely correct, strange translations or strange characters. However, the e-mails of cyber criminals are becoming more and more difficult to distinguish from real e-mails. So, just to be on the safe side, follow the steps below.



6. The infamous link



Does the e-mail ask you to click on a link? Then check that link very carefully. For example, a Dutch bank or credit card company will never send an e-mail containing a link that you have to click on in order to check your personal data.



Please note: the link displayed does not necessarily have to be the same as the technical link. So if the link is called <link> a completely different address may be hidden under it. Always check this and don't take any risks.



7. The wrong address



And what if a link is reliable? Appearances are often deceptive. Let's take eBay and ABNAMRO as an example: the real addresses are <link> and <link> Wrong addresses always deviate a little from this or have a strange extension. For example: <link> <link> abnam.ro/login, <link>



8. Attachments #1



Phishing messages often contain
attachments, the content of which is unclear or which resemble an invoice. Such
files can be dangerous because they may contain viruses or other harmful
software.



Never open attachments that end in .bat,
.exe, .com, .cmd, .vbs. A file called factuur.exe is most likely to contain
malicious software. And if a zip file is sent with it, this is very likely also
a fraud.



9. Attachments #2



 Also be careful with attachments that contain a .doc, .docx, .ppt or .xls file. These may seem innocent Office documents, but they can contain dangerous scripts. So only open these documents if the sender is known (e.g. a colleague). And be wary too. In Office applications like Word and Excel and in your operating system, you can disable certain scripts. Check this before opening an unknown file. 



10. Attachments #3



Finally, some operating systems hide the extension (such as .exe, .txt, etc.). A potentially harmful file like 'factuur.txt.exe' can then be seen as a relatively harmless 'factuur.txt' file.



When in doubt, the rule is always: delete e-mails!