'Nigerian Bank Scam' Meets Phishing Attack

For years there have been variations on the 'Nigerian Bank Scam'. Basically, an individual is promised a very large sum of money, typically in the millions, if they can assist with helping someone, generally a foreign dignitary of some sort, transfer an even larger sum of money out of an account in their country. Phishing attacks have now adopted a page from that playbook. Most phishing attacks either state that there has been some sort of fraud detected on your bank account or that for security reasons the company just wants everyone to validate their usernames and passwords. In either event, the attack preys on fear and naivete to get people to respond by providing sensitive information such as usernames, passwords, account numbers, etc. to the attackers. The latest twist on phishing attacks combines phishing with the 'Nigerian Bank Scam' to use greed rather than fear as the driving force to prey on individuals. For more information about these new phishing attacks, see this article: New Phishing Tactic Dangles Millions As Bait. To learn how to defend yourself from being victimized by phishing attacks, read Protect Yourself From Phishing Scams.