More Users Are Creating Netflix Accounts and Becoming Hacker Targets. How to Protect Yourself Against the New Netflix Phishing Campaign. I got alerted to a new Netflix phishing campaign, so I decided to share the information. True, there are more severe issues to be concerned about in our times. Malicious groups are also targeting healthcare systems, and corporate IT systems struggle to cope with widespread remote labour.
More minor phishing attempts, such as the one targeting Netflix, should not go unnoticed or ignored. Especially considering many of you are likely to sign up for Netflix for the first time right now.
Phishing Activity Has Increased Across All Mediums, According to Reports
We had information that phishing and spear-phishing schemes had been on the rise since the end of last year but that the year 2020 would see a significant increase. Malicious organizations worldwide know the fear of Coronavirus as a chance to profit. As a result, there has been a substantial increase in phishing campaigns across the board, some of which are COVID-19-related and others not.
Hackers are pretty aware of what they are doing, even if they are not directly utilizing the Coronavirus worries as a phishing pretext. This vast sociological and cultural shift that we are all seeing is a side consequence of the pandemic. Many people work from home and spend nearly all of their time indoors.
This has two implications. One reason for this is that people are creating more accounts for platforms that they can use from home. As a result, hackers might use the pretext of a new account as a phishing strategy, as seen in the recent Netflix phishing operation. The second factor is that employees are still adjusting to working from home, which means increased potential for phishing and other security threats.
Emails are clearly part of a more enormous scam that includes phone calls. This new Netflix phishing campaign's ideal victim picks up the phone and dials the false support number listed in the email.If the consumer ignores the email and simply clicks on the Help Center link, they will be taken to the legitimate Netflix Help Center. Unfortunately, the portal may display notifications during certain hours. Users may try again, only this time succeeding in contacting the malevolent persons that set up the Netflix phishing campaign. It's not the first time that customer service phone numbers have been utilized in fraud.
In times of remote work and quarantine, Netflix users are particularly vulnerable.
Internet streaming services have increased dramatically after the COVID-19 pandemic began, and people began spending considerably more time indoors. So much so that both YouTube and Netflix have declared that their video streaming quality will be reduced across Europe.
However, this is clearly not a deterrent to those stranded at home, dealing with all of the anxieties that these times entail. Since the pandemic began, many people have created Netflix accounts, and the trend shows no signs of slowing down. It's no surprise that the service (and others like it) are compelled to cut video quality until they figure out how to deal with the situation.
Unfortunately, this also means that there will be more phishing attacks. Even emails sent in the dark, as they are most likely, have a reasonable possibility of reaching their intended recipient. When many individuals are registering for Netflix, a phishing campaign posing as a response to account registration is significantly more credible.
How to Protect Yourself Against the New Netflix Phishing Campaign
Remember that no legitimate website will ask for your credentials, regardless of the email you receive from Netflix (or elsewhere). If you're redirected to a website where you're asked for your login information, it's almost always a phishing effort, no matter how exemplary their grammar is. As a result, don't put in any critical information (email addresses, passwords, etc.) and simply close the tab. Ignore the message in the email.
Unfortunately, some phishing emails are more advanced than this Netflix phishing scam. Even if you don't provide any credentials, you can get your device infected by clicking the wrong malicious link in some situations. All you have to do is keep updated with the latest scams and frauds to avoid this type of harm. So keep checking Save from Frauds for the most up-to-date information on online scams.