International brands caught in phishing crosshairs

May 16, 2006 2:50 PM

International brands were the main target of phishing attacks in April, pushing U.S. companies into second place, according to RSA Security's monthly survey.

According to the Bedford, Mass-based company, the United Kingdom now has the unfortunate status of being number two in the volume of phishing attacks, which ivolve sending falsified e-mails that ask for personal information from unsuspecting customers.

The U.S. still leads in terms of the volume of attacks, but international brands now account for 57 percent of brands targeted globally. Of this, the U.K. accounts for 42 percent, Spain 26 percent, Italy 10 percent, Canada 10 percent and Germany 5 percent.

The figures are partly explained by a drop in the total number of brands targeted from a record high of 127 in March to only 93 in April. Criminals also appear to be shifting their attention away from the U.S. and away from English-speaking countries -- both of which have dominated phishing lists since the phenomenon first emerged.
It could also be that phishing fatigue has set in the U.S., with banks better protected, more spam being filtered and consumers more wary of unsolicited communications.

RSA projects that the U.S. still hosts or relays two thirds of all phishing emails in the world, with South Korea, Germany, the U.K. and China well behind.
The fact that China figures well down in the statistics runs somewhat counter to other recent surveys that have flagged the country as rising in significance in terms of its distribution of spyware, spam and hacking.

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© 2008 Penton Media Inc.

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