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Just read that 90% of data breaches come from phishing emails... | Ask Anything - Free To Speak

Just read that 90% of data breaches come from phishing emails...

I was looking up how to spot fake shipping notifications after almost clicking one last week. Found an article on the FTC site saying 9 out of 10 data breaches start with someone clicking a malicious link. That number is way higher than I expected, I thought maybe half at most. It makes me wonder if most people even check sender addresses before they click. Has anyone else almost fallen for one of those fake tracking links?

3 comments

3 Comments

evaw182mo ago

Funny how we're all out here worrying about "advanced persistent threats" and nation state hackers, but it turns out Bob from accounting just needed to check his "FedEx" package from "Amazon" for the 5th time this month. I've definitely come close with those fake USPS texts, the ones that say your package is stuck in a warehouse until you pay a 30 cent "redelivery fee." But honestly, if 91% of breaches start with a click, maybe we should just admit that cybersecurity is really just a game of "who can ignore the shiny button the longest." And yeah, that 80% with stolen passwords stat just makes me wonder if "Password123" is actually the most secure option at this point since everyone uses it, right?

evahenderson2mo ago

Actually it's more like 91% according to Verizon's latest data breach report.

the_thomas2mo ago

Huh, I wasn't expecting THAT number! @evahenderson actually makes a solid point there, but I think there's something weird about how we count those breaches. Nobody talks about the fact that most of these "data breaches" are just people getting phished or using the same password everywhere. Verizon's report also says like 80% of breaches involve weak or stolen passwords, which changes the whole picture. So it's less about companies getting hacked through some crazy exploit and more about people clicking a bad link or reusing "Password123" for their work email. That 91% number is scary, but the REAL problem is basic password hygiene, not some advanced hacker nonsense.