Video Interview: Protect Yourself from Cyber Threats
On Thursday, June 4, 2015, Sean Hoar made an appearance on the “AARP Fraud Watch” segment of A.M. Northwest, a television program at KATU TV in Portland, Oregon, where he gave some tips to consumers about how they can protect themselves from cyber threats. In his former role as the lead cyber attorney for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Oregon, Sean worked with AARP to educate consumers about identity theft. Sean continues to serve as the Executive Director of the Financial Crimes & Digital Evidence Foundation and works with AARP to educate seniors about how to avoid falling victim to online threats.
His biggest tip? Think before you click. This sounds like a no-brainer, but as Verizon’s 2015 Data Breach Investigations Report* points out, “good things will come to those who bait.”
The overall effectiveness of phishing campaigns has increased, with 23% of recipients now opening phishing messages and 11% clicking on attachments – usually within a couple of minutes from when the phishing email is sent. And here’s an interesting fact: departments such as Communications, Legal, and Customer Service were far more likely to actually open an e-mail than all other departments.