6 types of phishing explained

What is phishing?

Phishing is a type of scam where cybercriminals impersonate trusted organizations or people to trick you into revealing sensitive information. Most commonly, it’s done through email, where scammers may send fake messages with links that either infect your device with malware or direct you to a fake website designed to steal your login details. But phishing can also happen via text messages, phone calls, or even file downloads — any way an attacker can make you believe they're someone you trust. The goal is always the same: to trick you into giving up anything from money to personally identifiable information (PII).

Successful phishing attacks can rely on a variety of techniques to make the attacker appear more trustworthy, like creating fake social media accounts or mimicking voices through AI phishing tools. Over the years, phishing attacks have become more sophisticated and require more awareness to combat properly.

Types of phishing attacks

While phishing techniques can vary in sophistication, they share one objective, which is to manipulate you into revealing sensitive information. Here are some common types of phishing attacks to watch out for:

1. Email phishing

Phishing emails remain one of the most popular phishing methods for two reasons. First, cybercriminals can use several phishing elements in one email. Attackers can easily embed malicious URLs that may lead you to fake websites designed to steal your login information or infect your device with malware. 

The second reason is the familiarity of email as a communication channel. Emails are often skimmed rather than checked thoroughly for signs of malicious intent. Attackers take advantage of this carelessness to insert malicious links and other harmful elements into the email, making you more likely to fall victim to the scam. 

Examples of email phishing include fake bank alerts, tech support scams, and account verification requests. To avoid falling victim to email phishing, always verify the sender’s email address carefully. A subtle change in the email address, like “[email protected]” instead of “[email protected],” can be a strong indicator of phishing.

2. Smishing (SMS phishing)

Cybercriminals use a range of tactics in smishing, from sending an SMS with links to a malicious site to trying to steal your one-time password (OTP). Smishing attempts often impersonate financial institutions since they frequently use SMS to send you updates on your financial transactions.

With smartphones now central to everything from bank transactions to multi-factor authentication, smishing has become a popular tactic for attackers. And like emails, text messages are often glanced at quickly rather than carefully reviewed, increasing the chances of a successful scam. Examples of this type of phishing include bank verification scams, package delivery notifications, and fake prize texts. 

3. Vishing (voice phishing)

Vishing is closely related to smishing, although this attack targets both smartphones and landlines. This method relies on the cybercriminal impersonating trusted figures like your bank, a government official, or even someone you may know to pressure you into taking action.

Vishing attempts have gotten more sophisticated with the rise of tools like generative AI voices. Cybercriminals may use such tools in combination with scare tactics to try to rush you into giving up information like bank account numbers, account credentials, or other sensitive information. Examples of vishing include bank impersonation scams, phone scams, and tech support calls.

4. Spear phishing

Spear phishing is a type of phishing attack that targets specific people, organizations, and groups, unlike traditional phishing attempts that target mass groups. These types of attacks are coordinated and can occur over an extended period of time, with the goal of stealing specific and valuable information from their victims. Examples include CEO fraud, fake invoices, and fake job offers.

What makes spear phishing dangerous is its highly personalized nature, which makes it more difficult to spot. These attacks are often well-researched and tailored to make the victim more likely to trust the attacker. Spear phishing can also use more specialized approaches, like whaling (phishing attempts on high-value individuals in an organization) or business email compromise (BEC) attacks (where attackers impersonate trusted figures within an organization to trick employees).

5. Angler phishing

Angler phishing takes advantage of the trust that people place in social media and customer support to extract personal data. With this type of attack, cybercriminals will often pose as customer support to trick you into giving up details like passwords, dates of birth, and other sensitive information. Other approaches include directing you to a malicious website that imitates official login pages or asking you for money to “unblock your account” or resolve another issue with your social media platform.

These types of attacks have become increasingly effective as more people spend time on social media. Attackers also target multiple platforms at once, allowing the scam to spread easily across someone’s social network. In more advanced cases, these phishing attempts may escalate into cyberattacks like identity theft or cyber extortion to make the attack more likely to succeed.

6. Clone phishing

Clone phishing is a sophisticated phishing attempt where the attacker creates a copy of a legitimate email the recipient has received (or might expect) and replaces its content with malicious links or attachments. This type of phishing is particularly dangerous since it hijacks genuine communications, often impersonating trusted individuals or entities. Because the email appears to be from a trusted source, recipients may not suspect any malicious intent. Examples include replicated bank notifications, IT support emails, and duplicated invoices.

Clone phishing attacks can either target users indiscriminately or be used to target a specific group. They’re often more personalized and are already trusted by both the victims and the platform being used to send the messages.

How to protect yourself from different types of phishing attacks

Given the numerous methods attackers use to carry out phishing attacks, it’s understandable to wonder if consistent protection against these threats is possible. Fortunately, it is. Adopting the following security practices can reduce your risk of falling for phishing attacks.

Educate yourself and learn the signs of phishing

Awareness is one of the most important defenses against phishing. The reason why phishing attempts are successful is that they rely on people being either unaware or not paying close attention. By staying mindful of these threats, you can significantly reduce your chances of falling victim to them.

Most phishing attacks can be easily spotted with a bit of practice and awareness. However, the best tactic to stay safe is to be cautious about any personal request for your data. Always verify the identity of anyone asking for your information, and never interact with links, emails, messages, or any communications that even remotely look suspicious.

Change passwords and secure accounts

If you’ve fallen victim to a phishing attack, the first step is to change your password and secure all your other accounts. Most people often use the same login credentials for different accounts and websites. A cybercriminal who phishes your details on one platform can easily use it to compromise accounts on other platforms.

You have to be thorough in changing your user credentials. Passwords, security questions, and even registered devices all need to be checked, changed, and removed from your accounts.. This practice prevents you from being phished through data breaches or compromised accounts on other websites.

Report the phishing attempt

Another important security step is to inform the authorities if you’ve been a victim of any phishing attack. Most phishing campaigns target victims indiscriminately. However, if you’re a member of an organization or have had your financial information stolen, you need to inform your bank or group that you’ve been phished.

This step is necessary because phishing attempts can spread beyond the initial victim. A successful attack on one individual can increase the attacker’s chances of affecting more people in their group or network. Additionally, phishing is often a gateway to more serious crimes like identity theft, and the consequences of identity theft can include financial loss, ruined credit, and legal issues. If you’d like to learn more, you can take a look at our guide on how to prevent identity theft.

Use other security solutions like identity theft protection

Services like NordProtect can help you manage the risks of phishing attacks by monitoring whether your personal data has been exposed and providing instant alerts about leaked credentials. NordProtect’s credit monitoring services alert you to any suspicious credit activity that may signal identity or credit fraud. It also offers identity theft recovery support in case you’ve already fallen victim to a phishing attempt. 

Other security solutions that can strengthen your defenses include threat protection tools and malware scanners. These tools help improve your online security while regularly scanning your devices and online activity for potential threats. Combined with the previously mentioned security practices, they create a strong line of defense against phishing attacks.