We overestimate our ability to detect phishing scams, survey says
Nearly 70 percent of people were duped by fraudulent emails that appeared to be sent from co-workers
Nearly 70 percent of people were duped by fraudulent emails that appeared to be sent from co-workers
Nearly 70 percent of people were duped by fraudulent emails that appeared to be sent from co-workers
Americans overestimate their ability to , according to research from cybersecurity company Diligent Corp. This can be problematic, since the US reports more phishing scams than any other .
An estimated 156 million phishing emails are sent every day across the globe, and it's only getting worse. In 2011, approximately 25,000 phishing emails were detected per month in the US. By 2016, the number increased to 225,000 per month.
Last year, Diligent Corp. conducted a survey of more than 2,000 people ages 18 to 75 from August 11 to 12. The respondents were shown two dozen emails and asked to identify which messages were scams and which were legitimate. Forty-six percent of participants were women, while 54 percent were men.
The represent the percentage of people who were tricked by a specific type of phishing scam.
Email from co-worker asking to schedule a meeting - 68.3 percent
Email from social media site like Instagram - 60.8 percent
Email from Dropbox asking to share a file - 37.6 percent
Email from software company advising to update account - 26.7 percent
Email from social media site requesting to change login information - 23.9 percent
Email advising of a court notice - 22.1 percent
Email from bank advising to restore account access - 16.6 percent
Email from IRS advising of a tax refund - 14.7 percent