Microsoft, Facebook and PayPal are the most phished brands
During 2020 Microsoft maintained its position as the brand most often found in phishing emails, followed by Facebook and PayPal.
Email defense specialist Vade Secure has released its 2020 Phishers' Favorites report which also shows that cloud services overtook financial services to become the most impersonated industry, whilst cynical hackers have been quick to exploit the COVID-19 pandemic.
Adrien Gendre, chief product and services officer at Vade Secure, says:
Organizations need to be aware that phishers and other threat actors are always looking out for new ways to target them.
Phishing is just one tactic used by hackers and the ever-changing popularity of well-known brands shows how cybercriminals' tactics are constantly evolving.
The Phishers' Favorites report highlights the importance of a proactive and comprehensive email security posture. Businesses should protect themselves and their clients from dynamic phishing attacks with a combination of training, technology, and vigilance.
Microsoft has consistently remained at the top of Vade Secure's Phishers' Favorites quarterly reports, holding the number one spot for four quarters. Q2 of 2020 saw the biggest rise in Facebook phishing with 4,373 unique URLs detected. There was also a spike in WhatsApp spoof emails coinciding with the pandemic.
Cloud services overtook financial services as the most impersonated industry in Q2. Microsoft, Netflix, Adobe, Apple, and Dropbox being the most impersonated cloud services companies in the top 20.
As more people turned to online shopping eCommerce sparked new interest among phisherfolk, eBay, for instance, didn't make the top 20 list in 2019, but jumped 28 spots to fifth in 2020.
The full report is available from the Vade Secure site.
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