You may have seen warnings on ATMs, in banks, or from financial services advising you to be cautious of phishing attacks. Or perhaps you’ve received a suspicious email claiming to be from your bank, or a WhatsApp message from an unknown number urging you to click a link. If so, you may already be a phishing target.
Phishing is one of the most deceptive types of scams because it looks so convincing. But what exactly is phishing? What are its effects, real-world examples, and how can you detect it before it’s too late? Let’s break it down.
Phishing is a type of fraud aimed at stealing personal or sensitive data. Attackers usually pose as legitimate entities, like a bank, major corporation, government agency, or even a colleague, so the victim trusts them and voluntarily provides their information.
Phishing typically occurs via SMS, email, social media, or fake websites. Once the victim enters information such as their username, password, PIN, credit card number, OTP, or biometrics, the scammer can misuse it for personal gain, ranging from draining a bank account to full identity theft. It works by psychologically manipulating the victim into reacting quickly without thinking.
Here are some common phishing methods:
You receive an email resembling an official institution (e.g., a bank) asking you to "verify your account" by clicking a link, often threatening that your account will be deleted if you don’t act. The link leads to a fake site designed to steal your credentials.
A scam via SMS, where you're lured into clicking a link for a fake prize, loan offer, or promo. The link may lead to a fake website or malware that steals your personal data.
A scammer impersonates a bank representative over the phone and asks for sensitive data like OTPs, PINs, or CVVs. The fake voice adds a layer of believability, making victims more likely to comply.
A highly targeted attack where the scammer already knows personal details like your name, job title, or work email. This makes the phishing attempt look much more convincing.
This involves duplicating a legitimate email you’ve received in the past, then replacing its links with malicious ones and sending it to the original recipient.
Targets high-profile individuals like CEOs or CFOs, aiming to infiltrate internal systems or trick them into transferring money.
One of the most advanced types—scammers use deepfake technology to create realistic fake audio or video of a boss or executive, for example, asking for an urgent fund transfer.
If you’ve ever clicked a suspicious link, here’s what could happen:
Your credentials could be harvested and used to access your email, banking apps, e-commerce platforms, or digital services.
Some phishing links prompt downloads containing malware that can spy on your device, steal data, or damage your system.
Once inside your account, attackers can change your password and verification settings—locking you out entirely.
Access to your digital wallets or bank accounts could lead to unauthorized transfers or purchases.
Your stolen data can be sold or used to impersonate you and scam your contacts.
Detecting phishing early is key. Here are the most common warning signs:
Suspicious Links:
Official organizations may send messages, but they use verified domains. A suspicious or misspelled domain could signal a phishing attempt.
Strange Language or Grammar:
Typos, unnatural phrasing, or urgency-inducing language like “Your account will be closed in 24 hours.”
Urgency or Threats:
Phishers create panic so you act fast—“Your account is locked, click here now!”
Too-Good-To-Be-True Offers:
Like winning a lottery you never entered. These are classic bait tactics.
Requests for Sensitive Data via Chat:
Legitimate companies don’t ask for your password, OTP, or PIN via text or email.
Fake Websites:
Phishing sites often closely mimic official websites. Look closely for distorted logos or broken navigation.
Using just SMS OTPs, passwords, and PINs is no longer considered secure. Countries like Singapore and Malaysia are moving away from OTPs due to phishing vulnerabilities.
To meet this challenge, VIDA offers more advanced and secure solutions:
VIDA FaceToken combines face matching, liveness detection, and device verification into a single process, eliminating the need for easily intercepted OTPs.
Face Matching: Verifies the user’s face against stored biometric data.
Liveness Detection: Confirms it's a live person, not a photo, video, or deepfake, by detecting subtle spoofing attempts.
Without OTP codes, FaceToken drastically reduces risks from social engineering, phishing, and SIM swap attacks.
It’s fast and seamless—ideal for financial institutions, digital services, and platforms needing strong identity verification.
VIDA PhoneToken uses Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) to authenticate users via their device. Each device is uniquely linked to the user with encrypted keys stored securely on the device.
Unlike OTPs via SMS, which are vulnerable to fake BTS or SIM swapping, PhoneToken ensures:
Only verified devices can be used for login.
Unauthorized devices are blocked instantly.
No reliance on mobile networks or SMS, making it resistant to man-in-the-middle attacks.
It also integrates with FaceToken so even if the device is lost or stolen, the attacker still can’t access the account without live facial verification.
Phishing is one of the most common and dangerous scams today. From SMS and calls to deepfake videos, attackers use many tricks. But you can stay safe if you understand how phishing works, recognize the signs, and protect yourself using VIDA’s advanced authentication solution