Phishing is a common cyber attack method. Criminal gangs use various techniques to induce victims to disclose sensitive information, such as usernames, passwords, credit card information, etc., in order to commit financial fraud. The following are several phishing techniques commonly used by criminal gangs and how they obtain sensitive information for financial fraud: ### 1. **Email Phishing** Criminals send fraudulent emails that appear to be from legitimate institutions (such as banks, e-commerce platforms, and social media) to induce victims to click malicious links or download attachments. These links usually lead victims to visit fake websites disguised as real websites and require login credentials or other sensitive information. ### 2. **Spear Phishing** Unlike general email phishing, spear phishing targets specific individuals or organizations. Criminal gangs collect the target's personal information and customize highly personalized phishing emails or messages to increase the probability of successful deception. This method is often used to target high-value targets, such as corporate executives or individuals with financial resources. ### 3. **Smishing** By sending fraudulent text messages, victims are lured to click malicious links or reply with sensitive information. For example, criminals may pretend to be a bank and send an urgent notification asking the victim to verify account information. ### 4. **Vishing** Criminal gangs contact victims by phone, impersonating banks, government agencies or technical support personnel to trick victims into providing bank account information, passwords or other sensitive data. They may use social engineering techniques to create a sense of urgency and force victims to make hasty decisions. ### 5. **Social media phishing** Phishing attacks use social media platforms, such as creating fake accounts, posting malicious links or sending fraudulent information through private messages. Criminals induce victims to disclose sensitive information by establishing trust. ### 6. **Malware and phishing websites** Criminal gangs may infect victims' devices with malware to record keystrokes, capture screens or steal stored sensitive information. In addition, they may set up fake phishing websites to trick victims into entering login information or payment information through tempting offers or disguised as real websites. ### 7. **Social engineering** By studying and exploiting the psychological weaknesses of victims, criminals design various temptations or threats to prompt victims to voluntarily provide sensitive information. For example, pretending that the victim's account has a security problem and asking for immediate verification of information. ### **Financial fraud methods after obtaining information** Once criminal gangs successfully obtain the victim's sensitive information, they may use the following means to commit financial fraud: - **Unauthorized bank transactions**: Use stolen bank account information to transfer, withdraw or pay. - **Credit card fraud**: Use credit card information to make illegal purchases or withdraw cash. - **Identity theft**: Use the victim's personal information to apply for loans, credit cards or other financial products, causing the victim's credit to be damaged. - **Account takeover**: Completely control the victim's online account, change passwords, lock the victim's access and conduct further fraudulent activities. - **Ransomware attack**: In some cases, criminal gangs may combine ransomware to encrypt the victim's files and demand a ransom to restore access. ### **Prevention measures** To prevent phishing attacks, individuals and businesses can take the following measures: - **Increase security awareness**: Be aware of common phishing tactics and do not trust suspicious emails, text messages or calls. - **Verify the source of information**: Before providing sensitive information, make sure the information request comes from a legitimate and trustworthy source. - **Use multi-factor authentication**: Add a layer of account security to prevent single credentials from being abused. - **Update software and systems regularly**: Ensure all devices and applications are kept up to date to prevent attacks that exploit known vulnerabilities. - **Implement anti-phishing tools**: Use technical means such as email filters and malicious link detection tools to reduce the success rate of phishing attacks. By understanding how phishing works and common methods, individuals and organizations can better protect their sensitive information and reduce the risk of financial fraud.