14 DAY TRIAL // It's no surprise that phishers take over bank clients because this is the most common way to steal financial information, bank account details and other sensitive data. However, phishers use more and more sophisticated techniques which could simply trick their targets and turn them into victims. A few days ago, such an attack took place in Australia where clients of ANZ Bank were targeted by an advanced phishing scam based on the same classic elements: an email message and a malicious website which looks similar to the genuine one.
The secret weapon of this phishing scam was actually the email message which could easily convince readers that they were dealing with a legitimate message and clicking on the attached link could be a smart idea. "Although we cannot disclose our investigative procedures that led to this conclusion, please know that we took this action in order to maintain the safety of your account," the message body read according to The Sydney Morning Herald.
As mentioned, the email also came with a link to a fake website looking similar to the official one of ANZ Bank, which asked for all kinds of private information including here registration numbers, name, email address and passwords, the same source adds. Obviously, the bank officials are already investigating the case but there's no word on how many of their clients have failed victims of the scam. However, customers are advised to mark the messages as spam and to refuse providing private information through such emails.
"Under no circumstances should you click on the link, reply to the email or provide any of the requested details. Always ensure that you only log on to ANZ internet banking by typing [the official website] into the address bar, rather than following links to the ANZ website. Disregard any emails that advise otherwise," a bank spokeswoman told The Sydney Morning Herald.