Phishing is one of the forms of attack preferred by cybercriminals. Attackers in Ukraine are currently mainly targeting communication infrastructures.
What can you do to avoid becoming a victim of such an attack?
For example, ask yourself the following control questions when answering email:

1. Do I trust the sender and subject of the email?
2. Do I recognize the link I am being directed to?
3. Think before you open an attachment. Do you not expect or trust the attachment? Do not open the attachment and report it to the IT service desk or privacy officer.

Be extra alert for attachments or links in e-mails, especially if the sender is unknown. Do not open anything you find suspicious. Want to know more? Then read our 5 tips below.

In practice, a lot of it is already intercepted, to prevent you from being inundated with erroneous emails. Curbing phishing entirely is not easy, but you can certainly take some steps to better shield yourself.

Start by properly setting up your spam folder so that the lion’s share of phishing emails don’t even reach your inbox. And a good virus scanner is also a must. But above all, make sure you don’t just leave your email address everywhere. The more often you enter your details on random websites, the greater the chance that they will come fishing in your inbox.So create a free account, for example in Gmail, especially for all the websites where you don’t want to leave your usual email address.

A bank, insurance company or subscription service will never ask for your PIN, bank account or credit card number via email (or phone). They will also never direct you to a website with a hyperlink where you are asked for security codes, certainly not via SMS text or social media.

Therefore, never share these details if you are asked for them in an e-mail. And if in doubt, always contact the party concerned before responding to anything substantive – chances are the message did not come from them.

Phishing is hardly limited to email traffic, so always be on the looking during your various other online habits as well. Malicious URLs and links that want to fool you can be found just as easily on websites (“You are our 1,000,000th visitor, click & win!”) and are also increasingly being distributed via social media.

Fraudsters are usually even more effective on Facebook and certainly via SMS/WhatsApp, because internet users are more likely to follow a link there than in a dubious email from an unknown sender. Especially when that message seems to come from someone they know. So don’t just click on any links elsewhere on the Internet!

Of course it can happen that you click on a link or open an attachment. In general, we observe that employees are more susceptible to phishing around lunch time and are also less aware of the risks at the end of the working day. Always make sure you report it immediately to the helpdesk or to the appropriate colleague in the IT department.

The quicker you act, the greater the chance that the damage from ransomware or other dangerous exploits can be limited. And be sure to do this even if you haven’t clicked as well, as it provides a valuable warning for colleagues.

Make sure, as an organization, that your digital resilience is in order. The NCSC recommends that you at least follow these basic measures. We’ve also listed them below.

In addition, the NCSC offers additional short-term advice below;

• Which digital attacks should I take into account?
• What can I do in the short term?
• How to act in case of an incident?

The NCSC continues to monitor the situation closely and will continue to share relevant information and advice. The timeline and advice will be updated regularly.