Phishing, as defined by Gartner Group, is a cyber-attack in which an attacker impersonates a trusted company or provider and sends out a bulk message (the bait), typically an email that directs consumers (the phish) to a fraudulent website to collect personal and financial information for identity theft. Phishing is the most recent dangerous trend in fraud to hit online commerce, costing U.S. banks alone $1.2 billion in direct losses, increasing insurance rates and eroding consumer confidence in online transactions. The FBI calls phishing the hottest and most troublesome scam on the Internet, and the U.S. Department of Justice has created a special unit aimed at identifying and prosecuting the perpetuators of these scams. Phishing attacks have grown to target non-English speaking countries, such as France and Germany, a prime indication that this type of fraud is getting not only more sophisticated, but also gaining wide geographical spread.
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