Cybersecurity is core to accelerating the eight pillars of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy. Let me share a practical experience of the various forms of cyber-attack and how to stay ahead.
When you talk of sugar coats, our fantasies are usually the coatings or icing that cover the cakes of deception used by attackers. Such was my experience when I received a message on my official email from a company in need of a special Gem Stone available in Nigeria. The message stated the amount they needed, where to get it, and whom to contact. Hence all they needed from me was to be their middle man. The message stated that I’m to make the purchase on their behalf; so, I am not allowed to disclose that it is for foreign use.
The opportunity seemed very juicy with no stress yet with huge benefits. Did I forget to mention that my payment would be seven percent of the whole purchase? Oops! It was a sweet dream I never wanted to wake up from. Little did I know that I was close to being a victim of an email phishing attack. Our company has strict guidelines around which staff operate with their official email and also provides staff with up-to-date hackers’ mindset. I alerted my colleagues and I was slapped back to reality after our background check on them.
Most of us encounter phishing attacks of all forms, emails, vishing, smishing, angler, whaling, and others. Being aware and identifying the attack is the first step. If someone had called you on phone with a heightened sense of urgency, requesting you to take any action, you might have experienced vishing. If you have received a text message with the aim of tricking you to provide a code, send money, or other information, you know what smishing is all about. If you have been scammed on social media, you are a victim of angler and if you have met an urgent request because you thought it was coming from your boss, whaling it was.
When next you encounter such, have the following at your fingertips:
- Search for legitimate information, testing all they claim to be. Do not click on the link or document attached to the email.
- Organizations don’t give random contracts to random people. A mining business will not contact an agricultural firm for a mining job
- Follow your company guidelines and standards for emails and other forms of communications. If your organization has none, encourage them to do so by contacting the services of cybersecurity professionals.
- Do not divulge personal or company information without due diligence and do not act in haste
- Report the incidence immediately
- Stay informed
If you did not take home a lesson from this year’s Cybersecurity Awareness Month and Digital Nigeria Day, which is marked October 24 every year, be aware that anyone can be scammed, everyone is a potential target. You have all it takes to stay safe while using digital tools. #BeCyberSmart #DigitalNigeriaDay
About the Author
Faith Medu is a Business Consultant, an avid learner and a writer. She is helping Presence Secure to provide value to our customers. Presence Secure is a cybersecurity company that is helping businesses and individuals secure their digital presence. Connect with Faith via LinkedIn
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