Yes, and because the people who create these emails get smarter every day, it is worth understanding the ways in which you can avoid being affected by them.

Phishing
Typically, this is an email that looks like it has come from someone you know well, or who you do business with. You will therefore be more receptive to the demands that the email makes upon you, which will include the request to click on an attachment or a link. Some of these dupes are very inviting – particularly if they purport to contain a potential buyers travel schedule, contact details, or charter preferences. A phishing email is not, however, sent by the person you think it has been sent from.
Q. What can be done to stop you receiving a phishing email?
A. Not much. The best thing you can do is learn how to spot one, and how to react when you receive one.
Q. How can you spot one?
A. Phishing often contain small spelling errors, or are poorly written.They will always contain a link or an attachment, with an urgent call for you to click/download.
Q. What do you do with a phishing email?
A. Delete it. Don’t click on it or open anything. Report it to your IT provider if they have a procedure for this, or the police.
Q. What is the point of a phishing email?
A. Clicking on a link or opening an attachment from someone you do not know opens your computer up to viruses of many forms. Typically, your usernames and passwords will have been compromised, as will any data stored on your computer. Phishers seek to charge you for this to be restored.

Spam:
This is mass email sent from a website or a database that you have actually subscribed to. In some cases, that database may have been sold or passed your information on to another provider, although GDPR has had a very positive effect on the reduction of spam.
Q. What can be done to stop you receiving spam?
A. Remove your email address from the database that is sending it to you by using the unsubscribe function provided.

For information on what Boats Group does to protect you against spam and phishing, please call +44 (0)1329 222300 or email [email protected].

Posted by Alastair Walton
5th December 2018