{"id":384,"date":"2025-08-04T00:05:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-04T00:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.yourtechupdates.com\/?p=3366"},"modified":"2025-08-04T00:05:00","modified_gmt":"2025-08-04T00:05:00","slug":"beware-microsoft-or-a-phishing-attempt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nyetechnologysolutions.com\/?p=384","title":{"rendered":"Beware: Is that Microsoft&#8230; or a phishing attempt?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"padding:56.25% 0 0 0;position:relative;\"><iframe class=\"fitvidsignore\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/1085660590?badge=0&amp;autopause=0&amp;player_id=0&amp;app_id=58479\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;\" title=\"USAug25 - Tech update video 1 ready to use\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><script src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/api\/player.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>When you get an email from Microsoft, you probably don\u2019t think twice about opening it. Right?<\/p>\n<p>After all, it&#8217;s Microsoft. One of the biggest, most trusted tech companies in the world.<\/p>\n<p>\u2028<\/p>\n<p>But what if that email isn\u2019t from Microsoft at all?<\/p>\n<p>Cyber criminals love using trusted brands to trick people. And right now, Microsoft is <em>the<\/em> most impersonated company in the world when it comes to phishing scams.<\/p>\n<p>In fact, new research shows that 36% of brand-related phishing attacks in early 2025 were pretending to be Microsoft.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s a huge number.<\/p>\n<p>Google and Apple were next on the list. Together, the three tech giants made up more than half of all phishing scams.<\/p>\n<p>So, what\u2019s going on? And more importantly, how can you keep your business safe?<\/p>\n<p>First, let&#8217;s quickly talk about what phishing is.<\/p>\n<p>\u2028<\/p>\n<p>Phishing is when a criminal sends you a fake email, text, or message that looks like it\u2019s from a real company. One you know and trust.<\/p>\n<p>The goal is to get you to click on a link, open a malicious attachment, or hand over sensitive information like passwords, credit card numbers, or even your full identity.<\/p>\n<p>Once that happens, the consequences can be nasty: Stolen money, hacked systems, confidential data leaks. And a world of pain for your business.<\/p>\n<p>The worst part: Phishing emails are getting smarter. There\u2019s a lot less bad spelling and suspicious-looking links.<\/p>\n<p>Scammers copy real company logos. Set up fake websites that look <em>exactly<\/em> like the real thing. They even spoof email addresses so it looks like the message really is coming from Microsoft, Google, or Apple.<\/p>\n<p>In fact, researchers recently found a rise in phishing attacks pretending to be Mastercard. Fake websites are tricking people into entering their card details.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a worrying trend, and it shows that cyber criminals are constantly finding new ways to catch people out.<\/p>\n<p>So, how can you tell if that email from Microsoft is the real deal, or a dangerous fake?<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s all about slowing down and staying sharp.<\/p>\n<p>Real emails from companies like Microsoft will never pressure you into urgent actions like \u201cClick this link immediately or your account will be locked.\u201d That kind of language is a big red flag.<\/p>\n<p>\u2028<\/p>\n<p>Always check the sender\u2019s email address carefully. At first glance it might look right, but a closer look could reveal slight changes. Like \u201cmicros0ft.com\u201d instead of \u201cmicrosoft.com\u201d. Cyber criminals rely on you not noticing these small details.\u2028<\/p>\n<p>And whatever you do, don\u2019t click on links straight from an email you\u2019re not sure about. If in doubt, go to your browser and type the official website address manually. It\u2019s always safer that way.<\/p>\n<p>Being cautious might feel like a hassle sometimes. But it\u2019s nothing compared to the hassle of cleaning up after a cyber attack.<\/p>\n<p>\u2028<\/p>\n<p>Phishing scams are only going to get more convincing. That\u2019s why it\u2019s vital to:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Stay alert<\/li>\n<li>Invest in good cyber security tools<\/li>\n<li>Use smart protections like multi-factor authentication (where you need two forms of ID to log in, not just a password)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Remember: The more trusted the brand, the bigger the target it becomes for scammers.\u2028And that email that looks like it\u2019s from Microsoft? It might just be a wolf in sheep\u2019s clothing.<\/p>\n<p>We can help you and your team stay better protected \u2013 and more vigilant \u2013 against phishing scams like these. Get in touch.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Another email from Microsoft. But this time it\u2019s asking you to take urgent action to protect your account. Before you click any links or provide any personal information, ask yourself: Is it really Microsoft? Or could it be a phishing attempt? Here\u2019s how to tell\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":385,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-384","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-information"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyetechnologysolutions.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/384","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyetechnologysolutions.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyetechnologysolutions.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyetechnologysolutions.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyetechnologysolutions.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=384"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nyetechnologysolutions.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/384\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyetechnologysolutions.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/385"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyetechnologysolutions.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=384"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyetechnologysolutions.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=384"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyetechnologysolutions.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=384"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}