phishing
The fraudulent practice of sending emails or other messages purporting to be from reputable companies in order to induce individuals to reveal personal information.
Specifically refers to the 'luring' aspect of fraud, often using psychological manipulation.
Word relationships
- social engineering: Phishing is a specific type of social engineering.
Commonly confused with
- fishing: Fishing is catching fish; phishing is catching passwords.
Word family
- phisher (noun): A person who engages in phishing.
Collocations
- phishing attack
- phishing email
- spear phishing
Example sentences
- "Employees are warned to be vigilant against phishing attempts that mimic the company's login page." A corporate security warning.
- "The attackers used a sophisticated phishing campaign to harvest credentials from high-level executives." A technical description of an attack.
Memory hook
A 'phisher' uses a 'hook' (a fake email) to 'catch' your password. Hook, line, and sinker for your data.
When not to use
Do not confuse with 'vishing' (voice phishing) or 'smishing' (SMS phishing) if you want to be technically precise, though 'phishing' is often used as a general term.
Fun facts
- The first phishing attacks targeted AOL users by pretending to be AOL employees asking for password verification.
Related words
Explore more words
identity theft, disinformation, fraud, gullible, scam, Ponzi scheme
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