How Does Phishing Work?

Phishing is a type of digital attack that involves threat actors sending malicious emails with the intention of tricking users into falling for a scam. The drive for a phishing campaign is typically to get victims to compromise their financial information, credentials or other sensitive data. Sending out spam email in bulk is a tactic that is commonly used by phishers in generic, large-scale campaigns, however, phishers are now shifting in favor of targeted, well-researched attacks. Modern phishing campaigns often employ social engineering, or techniques used to manipulate psychology. These deceptive tactics encourage recipients to act rapidly without taking a moment to think about the best course of action. Phishing is a cheap, easy and effective method of attack, making it popular among cybercriminals. Phishing scams are virtually free for attackers to carry out, but carry hefty costs for their targets. More than 70% of phishing emails are opened by their targets and over 90% of security breaches in companies are a result of phishing attacks. Victims frequently end up with data loss, identity theft or malware infections - resulting in significant recovery costs and damaged reputations.

Demystifying Phishing Attacks: How to Protect Yourself in 2025.

Q: What Is Spear Phishing?

Spear phishing is a highly targeted version of phishing that involves sending fraudulent emails that appear to be from a known or trusted sender in order to obtain sensitive information. Spear phishing is becoming increasingly common because it is generally even more successful than conventional phishing in deceiving recipients. As opposed to sending hundreds of thousands of relatively generic emails out at a time, spear phishing campaigns involve researching victims and using advanced intelligence strategies to compose just a thousand or so convincing messages. Spear phishing can be seen as a cyber crime double-play - threat actors have the ability to compromise the identity of one business and then use it to steal sensitive information from another. Currently, over 95% of all attacks on enterprise networks are attributed to spear phishing.

: by MaKenna Hensley; Published: 30 December 2024

Demystifying Phishing Attacks: How to Protect Yourself in 2025

From false account warnings to phony shipping notes, phishing scams—which prey on people's confidence and use their feeling of urgency—keep changing. Because of their simplicity and efficiency, these misleading strategies continue to be favorites among hackers. Over 298,000 phishing complaints were recorded, accounting for almost 34% of all cybercrime occurrences. This number reflects not just a statistic but also an increasing difficulty for both people and companies.

Phishing techniques evolve with technology. Today, cybercriminals use more advanced methods, such as social engineering tools and artificial intelligence-generated phishing emails, making it more difficult than ever to distinguish bogus from real correspondence. Falling prey to phishing frauds may have terrible financial and reputational effects. Companies lose millions yearly, and people suffer greatly.

There is no indication that this unrelenting danger will ease by 2025. Recognizing the warning signals, understanding how phishing attempts work, and acting early to protect your personal and business data can help you stay one step ahead.

What Is Spear Phishing?

Spear phishing is a targeted email scam that often masquerades as sources one would routinely trust, such as a banking institution, a shipping outfit, or the IRS/State Tax Agency. Sometimes, these emails come with hot links or attachments carrying malware to fool people into divulging data.

Spear phishing is more about precision and personalization than traditional phishing campaigns. In this way, it achieves higher success rates: a criminal conducts special research on victims and composes emails to manipulate trust and familiarity.

Emerging Tactics for 2025

The phishing attacks today are far different from what many believe they are. It used to be that, compared to the convincing spear-phishing emails created by professional attackers in advanced intelligence facilities, a few years ago, thousands of generic emails were sent, usually en masse, to any and everybody. These tactics allow cybercriminals to take part in highly targeted attacks, often focusing on the same individuals or organizations.

By 2024, phishing incidents rose 58%, with over 932,923 reported in the third quarter alone. Spear phishing accounted for 95% of all enterprise network attacks, reflecting a 25% rise in targeted incidents. With criminals leveraging AI-powered email generation and publicly available personal data, phishing attacks are becoming increasingly sophisticated—and harder to detect

How Can You Recognize Phishing Emails?

Email security awareness, training, and education are critical in protecting against phishing attacks. To effectively recognize and handle phishing emails, consider the following comprehensive guidelines and best practices:

Check for Spelling and Grammatical Errors

Fraudulent emails often contain noticeable language mistakes. Poor language quality can indicate malicious intent.

Examine Subject Lines and Signatures

Suspicious or unfamiliar subject lines and signatures that don’t match the official communications of trusted organizations can indicate phishing attempts.

Verify the Sender’s Legitimacy

If an email seems unusual, contact the sender directly using a known and trusted communication method to confirm its authenticity.

Invalid or slightly altered “From” email addresses (e.g., using variations like fedex-support.com instead of fedex.com) are common in phishing emails.

Avoid Using the Reply Function for Suspicious Emails

Instead of replying, initiate a new email to the known contact to verify the message’s legitimacy.

Scan Attachments and Links

Use malware and URL scanners to check for viruses or dangerous code before opening attachments or clicking links.

Malicious attachments, especially unsolicited ones requiring urgent action, are strong indicators of phishing.

Think Before You Act

Take a moment to evaluate the email's content. Ask yourself:

Does this email correspond to your recent actions, such as a purchase?
Do the sender and recipient addresses align with the supposed source?

Phishing relies on rushed decisions—pausing to critically assess the email can prevent falling victim

Be Wary of AI-Generated Content

Phishers increasingly use AI to mimic human writing styles, making emails appear more legitimate. Always double-check unexpected or unsolicited messages for authenticity.

Look for Inconsistencies

Discrepancies between the email's subject and body or inconsistencies in tracking information and attachments can signal phishing attempts.

An email claiming to be a FedEx shipment confirmation might have tracking numbers that don’t match the information in the subject line.

Can You Spot the Phish?

The image below is a spear phishing email identified and quarantined by GuardiFedEx Fraud Emailan Digital EnGarde Cloud Email Security. It very closely mimics a legitimate FedEx shipment confirmation email. Can you spot the phish?

Some indications that this is a fraudulent email include the following:

An invalid “From” email address
Invalid tracking information which differs in the subject and the body of the email
A malicious attachment in the bottom left corner - FedEx does not send tracking information as an attachment.

How Do I Secure My Business Email From Phishing?

It will take a multilayered approach. Training employees will be combined with advanced technical solutions to help secure business email accounts against phishing campaigns. While employee behavior is always unpredictable, establishing a robust security framework will help mitigate the risks as much as possible.

Employee Training and Awareness

Regular Training Sessions: Impart training occasionally so that employees may be well-versed in the latest phishing techniques and identify suspicious emails.

Simulated Phishing Exercises: This involves conducting mock phishing exercises to test the employee for vigilance.

Precise Reporting Mechanisms: Lay down clear processes for reporting from employees in case of suspected phishing attempts.

Advanced Email Security Solutions

AI-Powered Threat Detection: AI-powered technology can analyze email patterns to identify deviations from usual trends that can be phishing.

Policy-Based Encryption: Encryption of all sensitive communications to keep the data intact.

Implement Multi-Layered Security Measures

Spam Filtering: Use enterprise-class spam filters to reduce malicious emails to employees.

Email Authentication Protocols: SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, ensure the origin and legitimacy of incoming emails.

Zero-Day Threat Protection: Protect against newly emerging threats with innovative zero-day protection technologies.

Continuous Monitoring and Updates

Real-Time Monitoring: This means constantly monitoring all email traffic for suspicious activities and potential breaches.

Regular Updates of Software: Update all your security software to avoid falling into the traps of the most recent phishing techniques.

By integrating these strategies, organizations can establish a hardened environment that trains employees and uses state-of-the-art technologies to counter emerging phishing threats.

Guardian Digital EnGarde: Advanced Email Security to Stop Phishing

To avoid being targeted, a high-targeted phishing attack against your business, sophisticated and proactive email security must be needed. Guardian Digital EnGarde Cloud Email Security presents innovative, real-time security against advanced phishing campaigns targeting users and key assets.

Key Features of EnGarde’s Phishing Protection:

Scalable and Customizable Cloud-Based System

Easily adaptable to businesses of all sizes, ensuring seamless integration with your existing infrastructure.

Policy-Based Encryption Throughout

Protect sensitive information with encryption protocols tailored to your organization's specific needs.

Resilient and Real-Time Learning Open-Source Design

Continuously evolves to counter emerging threats through real-time data analysis and machine learning.

Innovative Zero-Day Advanced Threat Protection

Detects and neutralizes new, previously unknown threats before they can cause harm.

Fully-Managed System

Offering expert-managed services reduces the need for in-house support, allowing your IT team to focus on core business functions.

Comprehensive Protection Against Phishing, Spambots, and Email Spoofing

Ensures all facets of email-based attacks are effectively blocked, maintaining the integrity of your communications.

Why Choose Guardian Digital EnGarde?

Guardian Digital EnGarde stands out as a trusted solution for businesses looking to protect their email communications from evolving threats. With a proven track record of success, it has become the go-to choice for organizations seeking reliable and effective email security. Backed by a dedicated team of cybersecurity professionals, EnGarde offers expert support to ensure your systems remain secure and resilient against ever-changing cyber risks. Beyond its robust security measures, Guardian Digital EnGarde continually evolves, providing regular updates and innovative feature enhancements to keep your business ahead of sophisticated cybercriminals.

Keep Learning About Phishing Prevention

Phishing prevention can be difficult, but following the tips and advice outlined in this article can significantly minimize your risk of falling victim to digital scammers. Consider these additional steps to enhance your cybersecurity posture:

Learn more about an effective email security software solution that understands your relationships with others while gaining a more profound knowledge of your conversations with them.
Prepare your business for cyberattacks to make sure employees stay safe online.
By following best practices for email security, improve your company’s posture to protect against phishing attack types and email security breaches.
Keeping the integrity of your email safe requires securing the cloud with spam filtering and enterprise-grade anti-spam services.

Demystifying Phishing Attacks: How to Protect Yourself in 2025