There is no doubt that email is a very important means of communication and used by both private users and companies. There are many suppliers that we have at our disposal. They offer us a wide range of possibilities in our day to day. However, it is also a reality that pose a major security problem. In fact it is widely used by hackers to carry out their attacks. In this article we are going to explain what are the main tricks and techniques used by cyber criminals to attack by email .
How hackers attack by email
As we have mentioned, email is widely used by all kinds of users. This means that many are inexperienced, that they do not take the necessary security measures and that, ultimately, they can leave their accounts unprotected. This causes cyber criminals to set their sights here as they may have a higher chance of success.
They especially use some tricks and techniques with which they can steal information, passwords or infect victims’ computers. It is essential that we take action, that we avoid being victims of these problems.
Phishing attacks
Without a doubt one of the most serious problems in email is Phishing attacks . Basically it consists of an attacker impersonating the identity of a company or organization to deceive the victim. Try to make that user believe that they are dealing with something legitimate, something real and that it is not a problem.
However, that email has been sent by an attacker seeking to steal information . We can find many types of Phishing attacks. For example, by supplanting the identity of banks, social networks or any other platform on the Internet. They seek to trick the victim into believing they need to log into their account.
The point is that when logging in, the data goes to a server controlled by the attackers. It is a widely used way to steal passwords and credentials. A problem very present on the Internet and that common sense is essential to avoid it.
Scams with problems with services or platforms
One of the tricks hackers use a lot is to alert that something is wrong . When a user receives an email where a problem is mentioned, on many occasions they can be nervous, they can act in a bad way without being aware of the danger they may have in front of them.
For example, it is common that they report a supposed problem with our email account, with any social network or platform that we use. They usually launch the hook indicating that our account has been stolen and that we have to change our password or download a program to clean our equipment.
In all these cases we would be facing a deception. Basically hackers are going to launch the network so that we fall into the trap. They seek fear, immediacy so that users make mistakes.
Scams with raffles or prizes
A classic. It is something that is very present through e-mail. It is a trick that many hackers use. They try to trick unsuspecting users into telling them that they have been chosen in a lottery or have been awarded a prize.
Normally this email has a file to download, a link to enter and give data, etc. We are facing a scam that simply seeks to steal information and infect our computers.
Malicious attachments
On the other hand, another technique that cyber criminals use by email is to send malicious attachments . They can be very varied, such as a PDF, Word, Excel … Also even images or audios.
They often try to get attention in some way. They may invite the user to download that file where they will find more information about something in particular. The problem is that once you download and run it, it can seriously compromise a computer. It could be the entrance of ransomware, Trojans and many other threats.
Search answer to get data
Finally, another widely used trick is to find our answer . Why do they do this? What they want is to know if there really is a natural person behind that email account. In this way they could include us in a Spam list, for example.
