Phishing and Social Engineering: Don’t Fall for the Tricks
Cybercriminals have gotten smarter. Instead of just attacking your computer systems, they’re targeting the people in your business—using tactics like phishing and social engineering to trick your employees into handing over sensitive information. And the number of these attacks is expected to rise in 2025.
What is Phishing and Social Engineering?
Phishing is when a hacker sends an email that looks legitimate, hoping to trick the recipient into clicking a link or giving away personal information, like passwords.
Social engineering is a broader term for any attempt to manipulate people into giving up sensitive data—whether through phone calls, emails, or even in person.
Why SMBs Should Care
Many phishing and social engineering attacks target small and medium-sized businesses because they may not have the same level of security training as larger companies. One wrong click by an employee can give hackers access to your entire network.
How to Protect Your Business
Here’s how you can help your team avoid these scams:
Train Employees: Make sure your employees know what phishing emails look like and encourage them to think before they click. Suspicious emails with urgent messages, spelling errors, or strange links are common signs of phishing. Many IT providers offer training programs designed to deliver this type of training with little overhead to your business.
Use Two-Factor Authentication: Even if someone falls for a phishing scam, two-factor authentication (2FA) adds an extra layer of protection by requiring a second form of verification, like a text message code.
Set Up Filters: Use email filtering tools that can block many phishing emails before they reach your employees’ inboxes.
Don’t Get Caught
Social engineering and phishing are all about tricking people, but training and awareness can go a long way in protecting your business from these schemes.
Is your business ready for 2025?
