Watch Out for Heightened Cybersecurity Risks with Covid-19

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Phishing and other cybersecurity attacks are rising quickly – taking advantage of the scared and distracted (and who wouldn’t be a bit distracted right now!) We are seeing a noticeable uptick as bad-actors are trying to take advantage of the current fast moving environment. Take a moment to review this post with three important tips to stay safe.

Cybersecurity risks right now are high!

Right now, we are all at a higher risk of phishing and other cybersecurity attacks due to cybercriminals taking advantage of these distracting and fast-moving times.

The following are best practices in order to avoid falling prey to these attacks:

  1. Do not click on any links or open any attachments in a suspicious (or unexpected) email message.

Suspicious emails may have:

    • Bad grammar, spelling and punctuation
    • An unusual sender address in the “From” field
    • An impersonal greeting such as Dear Customer or Dear Sir/Madam
  1. Legitimate companies will never send communications asking for private information such as social security numbers, logins and passwords, etc. If you receive any requests like this, please delete and ignore them.
  1. Mobile device users should be extra vigilant.
    • Many mobile email apps make it difficult to see the “From:” field
    • Many mobile web browsers hide the address bar so it can be more difficult to spot a fake website
    • Scammers are increasingly designing mobile-friendly web pages that look just like the real thing!

Stay well and be safe – both in person and online!