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Phishing, a relatively new term describes those who use the Internet to defraud others. Generally this would take the form of a spoof email purporting to be from your bank, pointing to a website that asks you to update your banking details. Unfortunately the cleverly constructed website doesn't belong to your bank, it is one setup by the Phisher to capture your bank details and use them to empty your bank account.

In 2004 we featured an article detailing Phishing scams showing you how to spot them and avoid falling victim to them, and that advice still applies. Investigations have shown that the majority of the scammers are Nigerian, and hence have English as a second language. This is highlighted in the appalling use of spelling and grammar used in such emails. More recently though, possibly due to the success of their operations, the language and professionalism used in phishing emails has improved in leaps and bounds, making them appear far more genuine. This has the unfortunate effect of duping more individuals into parting with their banking details.

This social engineering is reaching new levels, with phishing emails warning of the dangers of such emails, and then going on to state that in order to offer you more protection your bank has upgraded it's security and requires you to login to confirm your identity. It's still a scam – it's still the same scam, this new angle though is fooling more people, despite heightened awareness of such scams.

In a move whose apparent altruism may raise a few eyebrows, Microsoft have stepped forward with a virtual big stick and joined forces with Nigerian authorities in an attempt to crack down on such phishing scams. With Microsoft providing the technical expertise and Nigerian authorities carrying out the leg work, prosecutions are already underway. With other email based scams originating from Nigeria, the government is now considering bringing in a law to prohibit spamming, punishable with a three year prison term. One can only hope that such measures are more effective than than those introduced in the UK in December 2003 which to date have had a negligible effect on spam levels, as was widely predicted at the time.

If you would like further information on phishing, and how to avoid becoming a victim, further information can be found at www.antiphishing.org