Cyber Dictionary
Phishing
A social-engineering attack that tricks you into handing over credentials or money by impersonating someone you trust — usually over email.
Phishing is the art of getting you to do the attacker's work for them: click the link, enter the password, approve the payment. No exploit required — just a convincing message and a moment of inattention.
Classic tells:
- Urgency — "your account will be suspended in 24 hours."
- A mismatched link — the text says
paypal.com, the URL says something else. - An unexpected reward — see the free iPhone meme.
The fix is boring and effective: slow down, verify the sender, and navigate to the site yourself instead of following the link.