Social media has offered an opportunity to stay connected with friends and loved ones across the world, but one must be mindful of the unintentional audiences who access your posts. While it may seem harmless to share a photo of your cat dressed up in a sweater, attacks related to social media accounts increased by 43 percent in 2019 alone. These attackers learn best from the information we all willingly provide.
The particular concern is through social media phishing attacks, in 2019 rising to 75 percent. Under these circumstances, the users may feel the messages are from a verified connection, without realizing their personal information has been collected.
These concerns should not scare one away from sharing moments of their life online, however, necessary awareness and training must be prioritized to avoid the risks. Just like your office may test against phishing emails, your organization should ensure its employees understand the consequences of falling victim to social phishing attacks.
If your employees are prepared to prevent certain followers and links to enter their platforms, both personal and corporate Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, or Instagram pages will increase your organization’s overall security.
Understand the signs of phishing attacks, especially in the direct message section of social media platforms. If an account seems suspicious, remember to:
1. Flag or report them properly
2. Secure your accounts with adequate login information
3. Do not click any links from accounts you may not know
Are you wondering how you can take next steps to protect your personal and corporate accounts?
Take the KnowBe4’s new Social Media Phishing Test.The test will demonstrate how users fall victim to these attacks, and the ways in which you can avoid the attacks.
