What is a Phishing Scams?
How It Works — Step by Step
- You receive an email, SMS, or message that looks like it's from your bank, Amazon, PayPal, or another trusted source
- The message creates urgency: 'Your account has been compromised,' 'Verify immediately or lose access,' 'Package could not be delivered'
- You click a link that leads to a fake website that looks identical to the real one
- You enter your login credentials, credit card details, or personal information
- Scammers instantly capture your data and use it to drain accounts or sell on dark web markets
Top Countries (Victims)
Top Platforms Used
⚠️ Warning Signs
- Sender email doesn't match the company domain (e.g., [email protected])
- Urgent language threatening immediate consequences
- Hover over links — the URL doesn't match the supposed sender's domain
- Grammar mistakes or unusual formatting
- Requests for passwords, PINs, or security codes
- Generic greeting ('Dear Customer') instead of your name
- Unsolicited attachments
✅ How to Protect Yourself
- Never click links in unsolicited emails — go directly to the website
- Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) on all accounts
- Check the URL carefully before entering any information
- Use a password manager — it won't autofill on fake sites
- Install anti-phishing browser extensions
- When in doubt, call the company directly using a number from their official website
Real Cases from Our Database
[US] So I got this random friend request on Discord today, and this is obviously a scam right? I like to post on Casting Call Club from time to time, and I randomly got a friend request on discord (wh...
"Comcast data breach settlement" postcards are real (Hasson v. Comcast), not phishing — how to verify Heads up — postcards are going out for a real class-action settlement over the October 2023 Comcas...
[US] Alright- real or fake email offer Got this email today and I’ve had plenty of phishing emails over the years of which I’m fairly sure this one is too….. but just in case, what do you all think? I...
Australian email scam for subscription that expired last year This is what was emailed to me today. I was part of this subscription service in 2022 and had a 3 year subscription which I paid upfront. ...
[US] got an email from “payflow” i received an email from “payflow” that had the actual paypal email telling me i had a pending order charge/invoice related to a customs fee telling me to log into man...
Fake Debt Collection Email from “January”? I know January is a legit company but is this someone spoofing as them? Because I definitely never had a Target credit card or a Walmart one…and I don’t have...
[US] Probably a phishing email but sending address is legit My wife got this email from a quickbooks email address which seems legit. I am positive this is a scam but why is the sending email addres...
[AUS] Microsoft Support Hi all! My dad managed to get a virus pop up on his computer (shout out to Bing for making one of their top results a trogan virus) He called the ‘Microsoft support’ number on ...
[US] One of the best ... scam setups. Identifytheft.gov As everyone knows a scam works best when they hit "sensitive" points. I got a call saying that Citibank issued a credit card using the last 4 d...
Possible Reddit investigation or scam? I'm posting here because I'm not sure whether what happened to me is a legitimate Reddit process or an attempt to compromise my account. A few hours ago, another...
Watch out for this nerd on reddit The screenshots are really are there is to it but someone messaged me telling me someone created an account with a similar username to mine and sent a phishing email....
[US] Was scammed recently Hi everyone. I was scammed recently, and I want to talk about it because it's been weighing on me so much. A few days ago my “mutual” (their account was hacked) on twitter re...
📋 Where to Report Phishing Scams
- FTC (reportfraud.ftc.gov)
- Anti-Phishing Working Group ([email protected])
- Your email provider
- Your bank if financial data was stolen