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Email phishing tactics are increasingly using HR topics such as dress code changes, training notifications or holiday updates.
HR-related email topics as a phishing strategy account for 50 per cent of the top email topics, according to KnowBe4’s latest Q2 2023 phishing report. Cybercriminals aim to keep up with market trends by creating realistic and believable phishing emails. They exploit emotions and aim to cause desperation, confusion, panic or even excitement to trick someone into clicking on a phishing link or malicious attachment. In fact, the KnowBe4 Phishing by Industry Benchmarking Report 2023 found that nearly one in three users click on a suspicious link or comply with a fraudulent request.
Click stimulus word “holiday”
Four of the top five holiday emails appear to come from the HR department. Incentives related to national holidays, public holidays and schedule changes were used as bait for unsuspecting end users. In addition, the report reflects the continuing trend of using IT and online service notifications and tax-related email topics.
“The trend in phishing emails revealed in the Q2 phishing report is particularly worrying as 50 per cent of these emails appear to be coming from HR – a trusted department of many companies,” says Stu Sjouwerman, CEO of KnowBe4.
