"Phishing Attempts Increase 400%, Many Malicious URLs Found on Trusted Domains"
In a news study, it has been discovered that nearly a quarter (24%) of malicious URLs are found to be hosted on trusted domains. This is done, because hackers know trusted domain URLs raise less suspicion among users and are more difficult for security measures to block. It was also discovered that 1 in 50 URLs (1.9%) were found to be malicious, which is high given that nearly a third (33%) of office workers click more than 25 work-related links per day. Nearly a third (29%) of detected phishing web pages use HTTPS as a method to trick users into believing they’re on a trusted site via the padlock symbol. Phishing attempts grew rapidly, with a 400% increase in URLs discovered from January to July 2019. The top industries impersonated by phishing include: SaaS/Webmail providers (25%), financial institutions (19%), social media (16%), retail (14%), file hosting (11%), and payment services companies (8%).