Phishing is a very common digital attack Hackers use it to steal information They trick you into giving them your passwords or bank details This is a detailed case study of how a modern phishing attack works
The Target A Company Employee
Our case study follows an employee named Alex Alex works at a large company called TechCorp He is a busy person who gets many emails every day This makes him a perfect target
Stage One The Lure Email
The attack begins with an email sent to Alex It looks very official The senders name is TechCorp IT Department The subject line is URGENT ACTION REQUIRED Your Account Has Been Compromised
The email uses the company logo It says that unusual activity was detected on Alexs account It claims his account has been temporarily locked for his protection To unlock it Alex must click a link to verify his identity
Stage Two The Fake Website
Alex is worried about losing access to his work He clicks the link The link opens a new tab in his web browser The website looks exactly like the real TechCorp employee login page It has the same colors the same logo and the same login boxes
Alex is at the fake website The trap is set He types his username and his password He then clicks the login button
Stage Three The Information Theft
When Alex clicks login two things happen very fast
First his username and password are not sent to TechCorp They are sent to a secret server owned by the hacker The hacker now has the keys to Alexs account
Second to avoid suspicion the fake website automatically redirects Alex to the real TechCorp login page
Alex lands on the real website He is confused He thinks the first login failed as a glitch He enters his username and password again This time it works He gets into his account and forgets about the incident
The hacker now has full access He can read Alexs emails He can steal company secrets He can use Alexs account to send more phishing emails to other employees
The Red Flags How to Spot the Fake
Alex missed several red flags These are the warning signs everyone should look for
The Sense of Urgency The email used words like URGENT and compromised This is a trick to make you panic and not think clearly
The Senders Email Address The email name said TechCorp IT Department But if Alex had checked the full email address it might have been techcorp support at gmail dot com or a strange address This is a major red flag
The Website Link Before clicking Alex should have hovered his mouse over the link The real website is techcorp dot com The fake link might have been techcorp login dot xyz or a long string of numbers A mismatched link is a sure sign of a scam
The Request Itself Legitimate companies rarely ask you to verify your account or provide a password through an email link Always be suspicious of such requests
Phishing works because it exploits human trust and fear Hackers are very good at creating fakes The best defense is to be skeptical Always check the sender Always check the links Never give out your information in a hurry